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Following our demand on 11 February, the Department of Water and Sanitation has approved additional abstraction for Rand Water. This will allow for more water to be brought into the system; but municipalities must still fix the leaks they have allowed.

While the Vaal Dam is over capacity, Rand Water will now be be able to grow its buffers, which will lessen water outages for Gauteng residents.

After weeks of no water, this will assist residents particularly in high-lying areas, end-of-line suburbs, and residents reliant on damaged reservoirs.

However, additional abstraction is not a solution on its own. It is a short-term stabiliser. The hard truth is that municipal failure created the conditions for crisis and will create the next crisis too, unless it is confronted decisively.

Gauteng’s municipalities, especially Johannesburg and Tshwane, have failed in their core duties: maintaining pipes, preventing and repairing leaks, managing pressure, protecting infrastructure, and ensuring credible water demand management. Non-revenue water, burst pipes, poor maintenance, and weak operational control have turned treatable challenges into repeated emergencies.

Until these municipal failures are fixed, Gauteng will face more crises, more frequently, and with greater severity. The province cannot survive a future where basic services collapse in cycles.

The DA continues to demand for an urgent, time-bound municipal turnaround, led by the metros, with transparent reporting and measurable weekly targets, including:

• Emergency leak and burst repair programmes, with teams and contractors properly funded and paid on time;
• Pressure management and district metering, targeting the worst affected areas first;
• Accelerated refurbishment of key municipal treatment works and pump stations to reduce reliance on the Rand Water system;
• Clear public communication: daily updates on storage, supply constraints, and realistic recovery timeframes; and
• Consequences for repeat failure: residents cannot be expected to endure endless outages without accountability

The DA will continue to fight for residents in water crisis areas in Gauteng and across South Africa. Stabilisation measures matter, and we will support them. But the country will not escape this disaster until municipal governance is fixed, infrastructure is maintained, and losses are brought under control.

Issued by Stephen Moore MP - DA Spokesperson on Water and Sanitation