/ MEDIA STATEMENT / The content on this page is not written by Polity.org.za, but is supplied by third parties. This content does not constitute news reporting by Polity.org.za.

Today, I have written to the Gauteng MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Mzi Khumalo, about the lack of coordination of water tankers to areas in Gauteng that still do not have water.

Large parts of Gauteng are still without water after the 58-hour planned maintenance by Rand Water.

The recent maintenance conducted was to upgrade Rand Water's infrastructure. The lack of involvement from the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) to ensure that municipalities are well equipped to ensure that its residents have access to water during Rand Water's infrastructure maintenance is of great concern.

High-lying areas in the province still do not have a water supply, and it will be days before the system fully recovers.

Areas that are still experiencing no water are Crosby, Roodepoort, Randburg, and Mogale.
In Mogale, retirement villages are still without water because tankers have not been sent out in a coordinated approach. All the water tankers are being directed to Kagiso, while the rest of the town has no water.

The DA is encouraging all municipalities to procure their own water tankers like Mogale City did under the leadership of the previous Mayor, Tyrone Gray. This resulted in huge savings in costs. Instead of spending R59 million on leasing water tankers, they procured their own for R25 million for 12 tankers.

However, while the maintenance work done last week is critical, a comprehensive strategy is needed when doing this work so that our residents are not left without water.

Furthermore, the implementation of stage six load-shedding last week has also further impacted water reticulation. This is not only because of the maintenance work carried out by Rand Water but also because municipalities do not have generators on site.

The DA is demanding that a water disaster plan be put in place by all municipalities and presented to MEC Khumalo so that we do not have a repeat of what is currently taking place.

Issued by Nico De Jager MPL - DA Gauteng Spokesperson for Infrastructure Development