Water Utilities Corporation (WUC) Chief Executive Officer, Gaselemogwe Senai has cautioned customers that the Corporation will revert to water disconnections upon the elapse of the State of Emergency (SoE) period.
Addressing local journalists on Thursday in Gaborone, Senai said since the beginning of the SoE, people have been reluctant to pay their water bills as they know they would not be disconnected.
In March, government directed that all households that had their water disconnected due non-payment of water bills be reconnected which resulted in over 40, 000 households being reconnected.
This was an effort to combat the Coronavirus as people were encouraged to wash their hands frequently.
Now, Senai said, customers seem to take advantage of this arrangement and are dragging their feet in paying their water bills.
He said over the years, disconnection has served as an excellent method to encourage customers to pay bills.
The Corporation is reportedly owed almost a billion Pula, with households accounting for the bulk of the debt.
“Our financial sustainability remains precarious, with a debtor’s book of P828 million, down from a peak of P918 million during the COVID Lockdown,” said Senai.
Households are said to owe the Corporation about P538 million which the Corporation is determined to recoup after the lockdown.
