Citizens in Ibb Governorate complained, on Friday, October 25, 2024, about the Houthi militia (classified on the terrorist list) selling water meters on the black market for astronomical sums.

They said that the Houthi militia is taking advantage of the people’s demands to buy water meters, through the black market that it recently created to sell them for large sums of money aimed at increasing the money it collects in the governorate.

They pointed out that the Houthi militia obstructed the transactions of citizens wishing to purchase meters belonging to the Water Corporation under the control of the militia, despite completing the procedures and paying the official fees.

They explained that official transactions remain suspended for months, while unofficial transactions are passed through financial bribes.

They pointed out that these complications pursued by the corporation’s management aim to sell the meters unofficially and for astronomical sums, which in some cases reached half a million riyals, despite their officially declared value being 40 thousand riyals.

Earlier, the Houthi militia raised citizens' water bill prices by double amounts, in the city of Ibb, the capital of the governorate, and the rest of the governorate's districts.

This comes despite the great suffering facing consumers as a result of the corporation cutting off service most of the month, which has forced many of them to rely on rainwater.