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Zvezda residents protest over water shortage: Millions were invested, but the taps are empty

2026-07-27 11:25:00, Aktualitet CNA

Zvezda residents protest over water shortage: Millions were invested, but the

Residents of the village of Zvezda, in the Maliq Municipality, protested on Sunday afternoon, demanding an immediate solution to the lack of drinking water.

Gathered in the center of the village, they said that they have been facing the same problem for decades, while the recent investment in the water supply network has not brought water supply to their families.

Residents accused the Maliq Municipality and the responsible institutions of not supervising the works, claiming that the investment was closed without yielding results. According to them, although hundreds of millions of lek were spent on the construction of the water supply, there is no water in the taps of the apartments.

"We know how we did it with our own strength, with our investments, by gathering neighborhood by neighborhood and taking the village's resources. For 20 million lek, the municipality does not invest, while hundreds of millions of lek were buried and today we have no water. If the municipality does not do it, we will open the wells ourselves with our own money. The works were not controlled by anyone. We were told that water would come to Zvezda on November 25, but even today there is no water. The quality of the works has also been very poor."

Residents said that for years they have been forced to obtain water in alternative ways, while during the summer season the situation becomes even more difficult due to high temperatures. They expressed that an investment that was supposed to end the problem, according to them, has proven unsuccessful.

"Our village is without water. When the elections come, they take our votes, then they forget about us. Today, in this heat, we are without water. We only have one tap where we wait in line. This is unacceptable."

According to the protesters, the lack of water has directly affected the daily lives of residents. They say that many families are forced to wake up in the early hours of the morning to fill their water bottles at the only tap that supplies part of the village.

"If you come at 3:30 in the morning, women are queuing with carts and cans to fill water. There have also been conflicts between residents over water. We have been paying taxes for 35 years, but we have neither water, nor roads, nor investments. We have even made our own sewage."

In addition to the lack of water, residents also raised concerns about the state of infrastructure in the village. They said that roads, sewers and other public services have remained unresolved for many years, while investments, they said, have been minimal.

"Zvezda has been without water for 30 years. They promised us water, roads and electricity, but all that remained were promises. Millions were invested in the water supply, but there is no water. No one has explained to us who made this investment and who controlled it. The municipality must be held accountable and do what it promised."

During the protest, there was no shortage of accusations against local leaders and the government. One resident said that although he had been a supporter of the Socialist Party for years, the lack of a solution to the water problem had made him lose faith in the institutions.

"We are protesting for drinking water. There are about 2,200 residents who have been suffering for 36 years for water. Many promises have been made to us, but they have not been kept. If no solution is found, the protests will continue and next week we will block the main roads."

Residents called on the Maliq Municipality and responsible institutions to intervene as soon as possible to guarantee the supply of drinking water, stressing that they will not stop until the problem is resolved. They warned that if their demands continue to remain unanswered, they will escalate their reaction with more protests and road blockades./ CNA