RESIDENTS of Vulindlela Flats in Makokoba have raised concern over living conditions which they say are no longer conducive to human habitation.
Vulindlela Flats, which are owned by the Bulawayo City Council (BCC), were originally designed to accommodate single men back in the 1970s. The men then married or invited their spouses to the urban area after independence, which culminated in the flats becoming family homes.
“We have requested help to a point where we have lost energy. This is a health hazard because toilets have cracks and holes. Human waste leaks everywhere and the windows are 90% broken,” one of the residents, Jennifer Kahoma said.
“You find that in one unit, four families live together and share one tap. So, when there is a huge bill only one person pays for it, yet four families share a tap and a toilet. If you don’t pay they cut the water supply.”
She said some residents had since turned the place into a brothel.
“Others are selling their bodies and alcohol in open spaces and in full view of our children,” Kahoma said.
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Another resident, who requested anonymity said the place had turned into a drug haven.
Ward 7 councillor Shadreck Sibanda said it was difficult to salvage the situation.
“The way to solve this would be to separate the pipes of the entire building and that means you have four different taps for the same bathroom and kitchen. It also means four cistern tanks for one toilet and that is next to impossible,” Sibanda said.
RESIDENTS of Vulindlela Flats in Makokoba have raised concern over living conditions which they say are no longer conducive to human habitation.
Vulindlela Flats, which are owned by the Bulawayo City Council (BCC), were originally designed to accommodate single men back in the 1970s. The men then married or invited their spouses to the urban area after independence, which culminated in the flats becoming family homes.
“We have requested help to a point where we have lost energy. This is a health hazard because toilets have cracks and holes. Human waste leaks everywhere and the windows are 90% broken,” one of the residents, Jennifer Kahoma said.
“You find that in one unit, four families live together and share one tap. So, when there is a huge bill only one person pays for it, yet four families share a tap and a toilet. If you don’t pay they cut the water supply.”
She said some residents had since turned the place into a brothel.
“Others are selling their bodies and alcohol in open spaces and in full view of our children,” Kahoma said.
Another resident, who requested anonymity said the place had turned into a drug haven.
Ward 7 councillor Shadreck Sibanda said it was difficult to salvage the situation.
“The way to solve this would be to separate the pipes of the entire building and that means you have four different taps for the same bathroom and kitchen. It also means four cistern tanks for one toilet and that is next to impossible,” Sibanda said.