Crop farmer and householder complain about hike in APUA water bills when there is little coming out of the pipes
Abdul Seisay, a local farmer, is complaining about high water bills at a time when pipe-borne water is not even being received on a regular basis.
Seisay says his bill is exorbitant for the size of his farm and he seldom gets water on a daily basis. Therefore, he has had to resort to other means of ensuring that he has water for his crops.
Meanwhile, asked whether the trucking of surface water would be an alternative solution to ensure that farmers are able to operate and produce, this was Seisay’s response.
Meanwhile, a householder tells REAL News it appears that the Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA) has changed its billing period without advance notice.
Whereas payment would be due between the 23rd and 25th of the month, she says, it is now due on the 17th. However, she notes, the amount billed has not changed.
She complains that her latest water bill has jumped to $184, the highest it has ever been. “Me never pay them kinda money for water [yet]!” she declares, adding that the hike came at a time “when we were not getting water for days at a time.”
However, she says, “it seems that people have come to accept that it’s something APUA does at the start of every year.”
