MOTORISTS hooted in support of a small crowd which gathered in the Westville CBD on Saturday to demonstrate their dissatisfaction with the proposed VAT and tariff hikes.

There have been various reports of the VAT hike either being suspended or coming into effect on May 1.

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said the VAT rate is expected to increase to 15.5% on May 1 and to 16% on April 1 2026.

On Saturday, members of the eThekwini Ratepayers Movement (ERPM) and a few Westville residents took to the streets with the aim to raise awareness about the active campaign building against the hikes.

The awareness campaign started in Chatsworth on March 21, followed by one in Toti on April 5. The next one is scheduled for Monday, April 28 in Upper Highway from 10:00 to 12:00. The meeting point is the Christians Centre parking area, from where people will walk across the road to a grass patch on Old Main Road.

The ERPM said the government should be prioritising water and light infrastructure issues. ERPM EXCO members said that for several years they have been addressing the water issue, from billing to service delivery, infrastructure and operations.

“Water has surpassed the word ‘challenge’. There is a very real crisis that residents in this metro face, one that will only get worse,” said Westville resident and ERPM deputy chair Rose Cortes.

“We see daily water bursts and leaks that the city isn’t keeping up with. Communities are facing extended periods of disruption to water supply – these interruptions can last anything from four hours to 42 days.”

Cortes said water tankers are deployed sporadically, inconveniently, and often without notice to the affected community – during working hours when most people are at work.

“We have seen annual double digit tariff increases hit our residents and with each passing year, we pay more and receive less.”

During the demonstration people asked, “What are we paying more for?”

According to the movement, eThekwini ratepayers pay the highest rates in the country.

“We have nothing to show for it. We can’t swim in our sea, our rivers are full of human waste, our roads are pockmarked by developing sinkholes, our working streetlights burn 24/7 while a vast majority of them don’t burn at all. It’s time for the city to meet our demand for Ratepayer Oversight.”

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