Drinking water has been banned in four villages near Tetovo - Poroj, Dzepciste, Golema Recica and Mala Recica, along the stretch from the cemetery in Mala Recica to Golema Recica. Analyses found the water does not meet drinking standards, and the ban holds until the responsible institutions say otherwise.

The announcement comes from the public utility Shar, which immediately stressed something important about itself: it does not manage the water supply in those villages. The villages have their own water systems. But because they fall within the municipality's territory, the utility remains responsible for oversight and testing.

And there the story starts that the announcement does not finish. Who builds these village water systems, who maintains them, who checks them and how often? The answer to the last question is a number worth remembering: the Public Health Centre in Tetovo carries out around 400 analyses a year for the town and its 99 villages. Divided up, that is a little over four analyses per settlement per year - for systems run independently, without central oversight.

The community leader drank the water on camera

Gajur Sinani, head of the local community in Golema Recica, publicly disagreed with the ban. He drank the water in front of the cameras to show there was no problem, asked where exactly the samples had been taken, and pointed out that the water comes from reliable mountain springs tested regularly every month. "The water is clear as a teardrop, they should not worry at all," he said.

The scene is understandable - he is defending his people and his spring. But that is precisely why it is a sign that something is not working. When a local official has to drink water on camera to contradict an analysis by a public institution, the problem is no longer only the water. It is who a citizen is supposed to believe.

Gostivar is the warning that is still fresh

Fifty kilometres west, in Gostivar, an epidemic was declared a month ago over heavy contamination of the town's water supply with faecal matter and bacteria. The prosecution opened a case, and three senior figures at the public utility Komunalec were arrested and are currently in detention. The end of the epidemic was declared a week ago.

Komunalec now says Gostivar's water is safe again, based on analyses of samples taken from seven points in the distribution network, and announced that daily sampling continues. That is the difference visible to the naked eye: in Gostivar samples are now taken every day, after an epidemic and arrests. In the Tetovo villages they are taken four times a year, before anything happens.

The ban in the four villages may end quickly and without consequences. But the question that remains is not whether the water in Golema Recica is clear as a teardrop. The question is who will know it in time the next time round.