Rundu sewage still flows freely
RUNDU – A family at Rainbow Village in Rundu has been left frustrated over sewage that constantly flows back into their yard whenever the wastewater station is out of order, putting their lives at risk of diseases.
The faulty sewer pump station constantly breaks down, leaks and spills sewage water on the street and nearby homes.
“Being tired is an understatement; we are out of words. Every time, we are being interviewed by the media but nothing has come out. The minister was here, but here we are – still in this situation. On Monday, I called the developer but they have not attended to it and the water is flooding my yard and will soon reach the neighbours,” said the affected homeowner, Grant Kandela.
In a few days, if not fixed, nearby homes will be fully flooded.
Kandela yesterday afternoon said he had hoped that with the minister’s visit to his house, things were going to change but to date, he is still fighting with the contractor from whom he bought his house.
“The stench is hazardous and it is endangering our health in the long run,” he said.
Since the completion of Rainbow Village houses in 2014, the Rundu Town Council has refused to receive the suburb’s facilities – and to date, they do not do maintenance on anything, despite residents paying rates and taxes to council.
Council want some defects sorted out before they sign off on the handover. When the pump station floods, residents suffer.
About two weeks ago, minister of urban and rural development Erastus Uutoni, after watching the families’ awful situation on TV visited one house out of the four regularly affected homes with the mayor and a representative from the Helmsman Group, who developed the suburb.
The minister told both council and the developer to clean up their mess to save the family from the hazardous situation they have endured for years.
“I was so disturbed when I saw it on TV. You could see sewer water flowing all over the house and sewer water is flooding throughout, and there’s no space where the family could even walk in the yard,” he said when he visited the family that has been traumatised by the sewer water and stench for over five years.
Uutoni, during his visit, told the two parties to solve the issue of the faulty sewer pump station, saying council and the developer cannot allow a situation of that nature to continue, as it is going to bring diseases to their community.
Efforts to get comments from the mayor, Gabriel Kanyanga, on the council’s engagement with the developer proved futile, as he was not available at the office nor on the phone.