If I had known that it would be like this, that we would be without water, I would never have returned here to spend my retirement days, says seventy-four-year-old Vukosava Bojanić from the village of Brežine in Lješanska nahija.
The inhabitants of that village, as well as the majority of Lješanska nahija, have been struggling with water for years when the summer months come, and as they point out - there is no more water than there is, even though the Boljesestre water source is supplied from that area of the capital city.
Currently, there are measures in force according to which, as they say, one day they have water, and the next they don't, but there is no written notification about this in the village.
It was planned that the restrictions would last longer, that is, that they would have water for a day, so that they would not have 48 hours, but, they say, they warned their representative, the president of the Lješan water supply Predrag Kažić, that it would be disastrous.
"I retired in 2002. My husband and I are here, but it is very difficult without water. They didn't build the plumbing properly, it's hard for me to find my way around, it disappears, when we should have it, half the day it's there, half the time it's gone. We never know when we will have it," says Bojanic.
She adds that she turned on the washing machine a few days ago, because there was water, but the water has since disappeared.
"Fortunately, I had water in my canister, so I poured it into the machine. We would pay a cubic meter and 50 cents just to have water," she said.
Local resident Željko Bojanić says that the water problem has been present for decades.
"One day we have it, the next day we don't, the problem has been the same for decades, they promised that it would be solved. We are going back to the 19th century, instead of progressing. The villages in Montenegro are mostly abandoned, I am the only one there with my family and children. There are mostly older people in the village, the average is 70 years and above. We have two invalids, who have been operated on, living here. You can imagine what 45 degrees means for them, without having water," says Bojanić.
He says that he returned to the empire, devoted himself to the village, has a mini-farm, keeps cattle, poultry, rabbits, and all that needs to be watered.
"It is a problem for us and for the livestock fund. This has been going on since the pipes were laid in the ground, 40 years ago. We received a promise from the local community that we would have water. It used to be the waterworks of Lješanska nahija, so we paid a flat rate. Vodovod Podgorica took over management three years ago. We are 11 kilometers from Podgorica, and we have no water. The president of our water supply company, in agreement with the authorities from the Podgorica company, determined who should have water and when," says Bojanić.
He stated that their representative is Predrag Kažić, and that every conversation with him was that the problem would be resolved as soon as possible.
"Three years ago, the water supply system was built, as you can see, how well it was done, there are still holes. Big disappointment as far as plumbing goes.”
The company "Vodovod i kanalizacija" replied to "Vijesta" that they took over the management and maintenance of the Lešan waterworks from the Board of Directors, i.e. representatives of the locals.
"In the previous period, this water supply system had inadequate technical equipment and an unsustainable financial model. In the period from 2018 to 2021, in order to eliminate technical deficiencies, primarily the replacement of asbestos cement network and the dislocation of a large number of pipelines from private properties, the Capital invested about 600.000 euros. The investments included the replacement of the worn-out network and the installation of new electromechanical equipment at the source. The network has been reconstructed in the villages of Bigor, Brežine, Gornje and Donje Liješnje, while the works on the reconstruction of the water supply network in the village of Goljemadi are in the final stage," claims the company.
They added that the goal of the Capital City and ViK is the complete reconstruction of the water supply network in the area of Donja Lješanska nahija.
"For next year, works are planned in the villages of Donji Kokoti, Briđe, Begova glavica and Sinjac. Considering the state of the water supply system in the area of Donje Lješanska nahija, water supply cannot be regular in the summer months. Accordingly, 24-hour restrictions were introduced in this area, with which the representatives of all the villages in this area agree. The aim of the restrictions, which are carried out by a responsible person from the city's Water and Sewerage Company, is the rational consumption of water, in order to ensure the normal functioning of the water supply system during the summer months."
Many unanswered questions
The company "Vodovod i kanalizacija" did not answer whether they were aware that a part of the village in Lješanska nahija was without water for 72 hours at the end of the week and when the long-standing problem will finally be solved.
It was not answered whether and when water consumption control was carried out in the villages of Lješan Nahija, if so, what irregularities were found, what was done, and whether any of the persons with whom irregularities were found were prosecuted and in what way.
According to the locals, the water in that area is managed by individuals.
ViK did not answer whether the company allowed this by any decision, and if so, which one.
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