While, for most people, the discomfort of an unsanitary public restroom might be a fleeting inconvenience, quickly forgotten.

For residents of parts of Ward 76 in Alexandra, however, that discomfort is part of their daily life. Princess Ndlovu, one of more than 10 residents who share a single toilet in their yard, said the arrangement has heightened fears of cross-infection among those who rely on it. Should any one user carry an infection, the shared facility would place the entire group at risk of contracting it.

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The situation is compounded by a second toilet in the same yard, which would have served to absorb some of the pressure on the first, but is not functioning at all. Its cistern has come away from the wall entirely, left hanging by a single hook and detached from the bowl beneath it. This has rendered the unit unusable, leaving residents dependent on the single remaining toilet.

This challenge is not only confined to Ndlovu’s yard. On 19th Avenue, the pressure, if anything, is even more acute. At least 19 residents there rely on a single toilet.

Beyond the health concerns, residents say relying on a single toilet undermines their need for privacy and dignity. They added that it is not uncommon for another resident to knock on the door while the toilet is still occupied, forcing whoever is inside to hurry and vacate for the next person in line.

Tryphinah Mofokeng, a resident in a separate yard on 19th Avenue who shares a single toilet with roughly 15 people, said the conditions began to deteriorate drastically when the facility’s lock was broken, making it a free-for-all. “Since they broke the lock, it is no longer safe. Sometimes you find faeces on top of the toilet seat. Some people do as they please.”

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Residents, alongside the Democratic Alliance’s chairperson in Ward 76 Bongani Cindi, are now demanding an adequate number of facilities for better sanitation and protection of human dignity.

Cindi said they intend to launch a petition among residents of the ward, to be delivered to the department of human settlements in an effort to secure the relief and assistance residents said they urgently require.

The office of human settlements, however, has said that the matter falls outside its mandate, since the residents in question live on privately owned properties, rather than municipal ones. It noted that its involvement would be justified only if the property belonged to the municipality.

The office also revealed that its hands are further tied by an existing court order barring it from undertaking any development work in Alexandra.

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