Tshuma
described
ZINWA’s
efforts
as
merely
“drilling
holes”
rather
than
completing
boreholes
capable
of
providing
water,
citing
cases
where
ZINWA
abandoned
boreholes
without
necessary
equipment,
fuel,
or
maintenance
follow-ups.
“ZINWA
is
drilling
holes
not
boreholes.
They
are
just
drilling
and
leaving
it
like
that.
There
are
so
many
holes
that
have
been
drilled,”
said
Tshuma
in
Parliament
on
Wednesday.“They
do
not
come
back
to
finish
up
by
putting
all
the
necessities
so
that
water
is
then
drawn.
Most
of
the
time
they
are
not
there.
When
they
are
there,
they
do
not
have
the
fuel,
particularly
in
Bulawayo,
they
came
and
then
it
broke
down,
they
never
came
back.
Like
in
Bulawayo,
I
just
saw
one
borehole
which
was
drilled
and
it
was
incomplete.
I
completed
it
with
my
own
money.”
In
response,
Minister
of
Lands,
Agriculture,
Fisheries,
Water
and
Rural
Resettlement,
Dr
Anxious
Masuka,
acknowledged
the
limitations
faced
by
ZINWA,
citing
budget
constraints
and
technical
difficulties.
According
to
Masuka,
ZINWA’s
current
resources
can
only
stretch
to
drilling
holes
initially,
with
plans
to
equip
them
as
funds
become
available.
“When
we
say
we
need
resources
to
complete
boreholes
as
planned,
this
is
precisely
what
we
mean,”
Masuka
responded.“We
have
31
drilling
rigs
which
we
have
already
acquired
as
Government,
we
will
not
leave
these
idle
at
the
office
until
I
can
get
the
pipes
for
equipping
the
borehole.
I
will
go
and
drill
the
boreholes
and
leave
a
hole.
That
is
the
first
thing,
before
it
becomes
a
borehole.
It
is
actually
good
progress.
We
have
made
so
much
progress.
The
Hon.
Member
is
seeing
progress
that
there
are
holes.
The
Hon.
Member
is
saying,
please
complete,
for
which
we
want
more
resources.”
Minister
Masuka
outlined
that
ZINWA’s
efforts
are
aligned
with
the
Presidential
Rural
Development
Programme,
which
targets
drilling
boreholes
in
35
000
rural
villages,
starting
with
regions
hardest
hit
by
drought.
He
explained
that
Bulawayo,
due
to
its
urban
classification,
is
lower
on
the
priority
list
with
only
one
rig
allocated
to
it,
while
drought-prone
areas
receive
up
to
five.
“The
policy
aims
to
provide
water
equitably,”
Masuka
said,
“but
due
to
limited
resources,
drought-affected
regions
are
prioritised.
In
Regions
4
and
5,
for
example,
we
have
drilled
boreholes
in
372
out
of
the
635
prioritised
wards.
Once
we
see
normal
rainfall
levels,
we’ll
resume
broader
borehole
installations,
including
urban
areas.”
Pumula
MP
Sichelesile
Mahlangu
pressed
for
specifics
on
where
these
boreholes
were
drilled
in
Bulawayo,
stating
that
areas
known
for
water
shortages
remain
unserved.
“The
Minister
said
boreholes
were
drilled
in
Bulawayo,
but
where
exactly?
People
in
hotspots
still
lack
water
access.
We
need
a
clear
list
of
locations
and
timelines
for
outstanding
projects,”
said
Mahlangu.
Meanwhile,
Dr
Masuka
noted
geological
issues
as
another
challenge
to
the
successful
drilling
of
boreholes.
“What
technicians
say
is
different
from
what
has
been
raised.
We
believe
that
we
have
granite,
this
is
the
geology
that
we
are
alluding
to,
which
means
that
digging
deeper,
the
machines
sometimes
might
find
challenges
in
these
rocks.
When
they
do
not
get
the
water,
it
is
because
the
water
table
has
gone
down,
it
is
deeper
than
anticipated,”
he
explained.
He
added
that
when
ZINWA
leaves
the
holes
open,
they
hope
to
revisit
the
sites
after
the
rainy
season
as
technical
experts
believe
this
approach
could
yield
water
sources
in
the
future.
“Specialists
say
the
reason
why
they
did
not
cover
those
holes
is
because
they
believe
that
when
the
rains
come,
they
will
then
have
to
go
and
check
on
the
following
year
to
determine
what
the
position
would
be
regarding
the
water
table.
If
the
water
table
is
at
a
level
which
can
be
worked
upon,
then
they
will
do
that.
When
it
is
not
the
case
then
they
will
have
to
go
with
a
different
plan,”
Dr
Masuka
said
The
minister
went
on
to
explain
the
government
believes
that
specialists
should
be
deployed
to
study
how
boreholes
do
not
sink
and
disappear
without
tapping
into
the
water
table.
“We
need
that
specialist
knowledge.
In
the
past,
we
used
indigenous
storage
systems.
We
say
if
they
use
their
scientific
approach
together
with
the
indigenous
knowledge
systems,
then
we
might
know
where
the
water
is,”
Dr
Masuka
said.
“We
need
to
deploy
all
the
tools
that
we
have
because
we
do
not
have
much
money
and
we
cannot
use
inadequate
machines
where
there
is
no
water
and
where
we
know
that
we
will
not
find
the
water.”
The
water
minister
was
urged
to
address
these
concerns
raised
by
communities
and
MPs
through
additional
research
and
reallocation
of
resources
to
meet
peoples’
pressing
needs.