The City of Windhoek has said it will dispatch a maintenance team to the Mix settlement to inspect the six public toilets closed previously because of vandalism.

Community members have complained that they have resorted to open defecation because the toilets are locked.

City of Windhoek spokesperson Harold Akwenye told Nampa on Thursday the toilets were locked because the angle valves were damaged, causing the water to run continuously.

Akwenye said users removed the angle valves to collect water from the toilets instead of using tokens to pay for water. He said the constant running of the water not only leads to constant maintenance issues, but also incurs costs for the council.

He said that in the past the City conducted repairs to these toilets with the intention of handing them over to the user communities for them to manage, control and safeguard as well as to attend to maintenance thereof, but unfortunately the process did not materialise as planned.

“I want to assure the Mix community that the city takes this matter seriously. Due to time constraints in arranging the above, it leaves the City with no choice but to dispatch the city’s maintenance team to inspect the toilets once again, and open such for usage,” Akwenye said.

He noted that one of the key challenges the City faces with the toilets is vandalism and theft. Communities do not assume responsibility for safeguarding these facilities, he added.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency