DA demands for maintenance to be prioritised
The Democratic Alliance has stated it is urgent that the Ekurhuleni Metro Municipality prioritises the maintenance of existing infrastructure to avoid a complete collapse of both the electricity and water systems.
Answers to questions posed by the DA paint a dismal picture of existing infrastructure and its maintenance.
“For example, there were over 2000 unplanned power interruptions across the municipality in the 2013/2014 financial year alone and 50 per cent of these were underground cable faults,” said DA councillor Bruna Haipel.
“Each of the power outages has to be identified and investigated individually and the DA has requested that the Energy Department provide the oversight committee with a comprehensive breakdown of the problems including what actions were taken to resolve the power failures.
“It is important to have this information in order prevent further similar problems.
“It is clear to the DA that the EMM is not budgeting sufficiently for maintenance and the upgrading of outdated infrastructure.”
The DA claims it is simply a matter of mismanagement of the departments and the party believes that the MMC for Water and Energy, Clr Aubrey Nxumalo, should step aside in favour of someone who will implement the very simple measures required to prevent a crisis and complete the necessary upgrades and maintenance.
“Challenges facing the Energy Department could be easily be rectified if proper steps are taken namely: adequate budget for the upgrades and maintenance, proper cooperation with the Metro Police to prevent theft of equipment and cables, and the prevention of illegal connections which not only cost the EMM over R250m per year but also put unnecessary stress on the system causing more faults and shortening the life of the equipment,” said Haipel.
“In the Water Department, delays are caused by bad planning.
“The Vosloorus and Pomona New Eastern outfall sewer tenders and the Elsburg Koppies contract were not awarded in the last financial year.
“Delays of this nature on huge projects such as these have far reaching consequences for residents and simply cannot be allowed to continue.
“A well-run metro would have key performance indicators (KPI) which would accurately reflect the upgrade targets and a full staff of properly qualified officials would be measured on these targets.”
