It’s a disaster: Parts of Govan Mbeki Municipality still without water after more than a week; reservoirs at 0%

Desperate \residents in parts of the Govan Mbeki Local Municipality – whose taps ran dry more than a week ago due to planned maintenance by Rand Water – are currently flocking to AfriForum’s emergency water point in Bethal. Since Wednesday, AfriForum, in collaboration with local farmers, has made more than 200 000 litres of water available to residents at its emergency water point in the town. The civil rights organisation maintains that the municipality’s contingency planning for this scheduled maintenance has been a dismal failure and warns that the fact that all towns in the municipality remain without water is leading toward a humanitarian disaster that could have been prevented.

According to Hennie Bekker, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for the Highveld, the municipality failed to make adequate preparations to mitigate the impact on its residents. During a media conference on 15 July, Nhlakanipho Zuma, Mayor of the Govan Mbeki Municipality, stated that the municipality had been warned several months in advance that maintenance would commence on 17 July, resulting in water outages lasting a maximum of 72 hours. He further stated that the full restoration of the water supply in some parts of the municipality could take up to 14 days.

“Despite this advance notice, the municipality still failed to make adequate preparations to avert this disaster,” explains Bekker. “Moreover, notifying residents just over two days in advance of this total suspension of the water supply – which could last up to two weeks in some areas – is unacceptable.”

Bekker further emphasises that the inadequate water supply to the municipality has been an ongoing issue for months and is now forming a pattern. Residents of towns within the municipality – including Bethal, Secunda, Evander, Trichard, and Kinross, among others – are repeatedly left without sufficient water for weeks whenever maintenance or repairs are required.

“Residents demand answers, but amidst a failing municipality that offers no clear explanations, they are left to fend for themselves. The municipality consistently refers water supply inquiries to Rand Water, while the latter refers residents back to the municipality. Confidence in the municipality’s ability to look after the interests of its residents reached an all-time low long ago,” explains Bekker.

Meanwhile, it appears that the water supply – particularly to Bethal – will not be restored anytime soon. According to a media statement published by the municipality on social media yesterday, all four reservoirs in Region 1 (which supplies water to Bethal and Emzinoni) remain completely empty. In Region 2 (Trichardt, Secunda, Evander, Kinross, Leandra, and Eendraght), the Kinross reservoir is at 90% capacity, yet water cannot be pumped from it due to electrical maintenance work. Other reservoirs in this region are at between 0% and 30% capacity, while two of the three reservoirs in Region 3 (Embalenhle and Charl Cilliers) are at 0% capacity, and the third is barely 30% full.

AfriForum legal action continues

AfriForum has already initiated legal action against Rand Water after the water utility decreased the municipality’s water supply in 2019 due to non-payment.

“Legal action is essential, but it does not bring the immediate relief that residents so desperately need,” explains Bekker. “The ongoing water supply problems are now rightly leading residents to ask whether the repeated maintenance is merely being used as an excuse for their dry taps.”

“A total collapse of the water network in this municipality is now a reality. It happens almost every month. There is simply no longer the capacity to store water, as supply deteriorates month after month while consumption continues to rise. Residents and businesses are forced to devise their own solutions, while state bodies squabble, shift blame, and delay court proceedings,” says Bekker.

Help is now essential – get involved

Where the capacity exists, AfriForum has already established emergency water points at grassroots level to provide essential relief amidst water shortages. In Bethal, AfriForum coordinates water deliveries, while local farmers offload the water free of charge at emergency water points, schools, care homes, and other institutions providing essential services.

AfriForum calls on farmers from other towns within the Govan Mbeki Municipality to get involved as well, in order to extend emergency relief to other parts of the area. Contact Bekker (084 905 6415) for more information.