Thiik Thiik Mayardit, Deputy Mayor of Juba. | Courtesy photo.

The deputy mayor of Juba City said the Eritrean ambassador to South Sudan has promised to help in resolving the ongoing strike by water tankers over price reduction which has left the city in dire water shortage.

Some Juba residents said on Sunday they have gone for four days without access to water for domestic use – a situation blamed on the City Council’s recent introduction of lowered water tariffs as a result of relative exchange rate stability.

The directive issued in early October called on water tankers to sell a drum of water at 2,500 South Sudan pounds within the city and 3,500 pounds in the suburbs.

But the drivers reject the new tariffs, arguing that they are insufficient to cover the rising costs of operating their tankers, including maintenance, fuel, and traffic fees.

In an interview with Eye Radio, Thiik Thiik Mayardit acknowledged the difficulties faced by Juba residents in obtaining drinking water due to the ongoing absence of water tankers.

Mayardit admitted that the water crisis has worsened because the price reduction was issued without listening to concerns of water sellers. He said efforts are underway to hold consultations with the drivers to resolve the issue.

According to Mayardit, he has spoken to the ambassador of Eritrean – where most of the tanker drivers are from – to convince them to return to work. He said the Eritrean ambassador promised that the water tankers will soon resume work.

“I talked to the ambassador of Eritrea as most of the drivers are from and I told him that water tankers are not operating. Some citizens had four days and others five days without water,” he said.

“You don’t do something without having an alternative to the problem. When they summoned him, the mayor told the parliament, are you going to help me in what I’m going to do? However I talked to the ambassador and he confirmed to me that the water tankers would resume work.”

Mayardit further said the Council is currently negotiating with the water sellers, and they will resume work on Monday after a mutual agreement on the tariff.

Juba City does not have a pipe water distribution system, and its residential areas rely on water tankers for domestic use. Residents have been calling on the government to construct a more reliable water distribution network.

In October 5, Central Equatoria Governor Augustino Jadalla directed Juba City Council leadership to withdraw the license of water tankers who continue to stay off work amid an ongoing strike that has left Juba residents in dire need of water.

The governor told the City Council leadership to address pressing issues facing the city, including the resistance of water tankers against its fixed prices as well as waste management and improved service delivery.

In September 11, the national parliament summoned water stakeholders including the Water Minister, the Governor of Central Equatoria, the Mayor of Juba, and officials from Urban Water Corporation to raise the issue of rising water prices and propose a solution.

Following deliberations, the parliament recommended that the water stakeholders hold a meeting to address the concern and directed relevant parliamentary committees to oversee the implementation of a solution to the rising water cost.