Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za

3-minute read
04 September 2024 | 14:17 CAT

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These disruptions have caused significant inconvenience and hardship for residents and severely impacted daily life and essential services, creating an urgent need for immediate action.

The water challenges in Makhanda, Eastern Cape, have been ongoing for several years. One key challenge was the corruption and mismanagement related to the lost or stolen R400 million to upgrade the James Kleynhans Water Treatment Works in Makhanda.

“The recent outages have exacerbated the challenges faced by a very patient community, particularly in terms of health and sanitation. We have said this over and over, the only time things will get better is when people face the music. When we charge municipal managers, we will see things change,” says Dr Ferrial Adam, Executive Manager of WaterCAN, an OUTA initiative.

Similarly, the water outages in eThekwini have created a critical situation for residents, severely affecting essential services such as schools, hospitals, and businesses. The disruption of these normal operations poses a serious public health risk, underlining the gravity of the situation.

“While algae in water systems does occur, and can block filters, the question for us is: how was it allowed to get so bad? What is the maintenance schedule that ensures that filters are regularly cleaned to prevent blockage?” says Adam.

The short-term solution in eThekwini is to use chemical treatments to unclog the filters and to get more water tankers to provide water. The tankers currently in use have not been able to deal with the number of areas affected.

“Given the impact on the quality of drinking water in eThekwini, it is imperative that the municipality test daily and share these results with the public. In addition, our reliance on water tankers when in a crisis situation is worrying as we know that there is a growing water tanker mafia. This kind of outage is feeding this mafia and we need to stop it,” says Adam.

WaterCAN demands that municipalities publish clear maintenance plans, provide open and transparent information on water tanker companies (including the full costs to the city), charge responsible officials for negligence and pollution, and provide regular information on the quality of the water we are drinking.

Listen to the full interview on The Daily Round Up with Moulana Junaid Kharsany and Dr Ferrial Adam here.