DA members picketed outside the Pinetown Water and Sanitation Depot on Thursday, September 10, calling for urgent action to address the ongoing water crisis in eThekwini.

The protesters sang and held placards bearing messages including “Bring Back The Water” and “Water Tankers Are Not Permanent Solutions”.

Local councillor Caelee Laing said the DA eThekwini mayoral candidate, Haniff Hoosen, had highlighted the scale of the city’s water losses, with more than 13 000 leaks reportedly recorded across eThekwini.

Also read: Precious water wasted in Malvern water leak

Addressing the crowd outside the depot, Hoosen said the municipality was losing more than 60% of its water through leaks and other forms of water loss.

According to Hoosen, these losses cost ratepayers approximately R3b a year.

He called on the mayor and city manager to suspend Ednick Msweli, executive director of the Technical Services Department at eThekwini Municipality, with immediate effect, citing what he described as failures within the department under Msweli’s leadership.

“We are calling on the city manager and the mayor to take action against the leadership of this department because we are losing more water than we are receiving through leaks and unattended water issues and water loss causes,” said Hoosen.

Hoosen also revealed the DA’s proposed eThekwini Water Management Plan, which he said would serve as a practical blueprint for repairing the city’s failing water infrastructure and restoring a reliable water supply.

eThekwini Municipality’s marketing and communications spokesperson Senzelwe Mzila said the City has been able to largely resolve the issue of the plumbing contractors who are working around the clock to maintain the city’s water and sanitation infrastructure.

“The city is also dealing with the prevalence of water leaks that result from illegal connections – residents are urged to report illegal connections, residents are also encouraged to use water wisely as the city has extreme pressure on its wider system and smart water usage is crucial. 

“Similarly, the City is dealing with the issue of non-revenue water loss which has been reduced to 55% with work ongoing to reduce it further and bring it in line with the national standards,” said Mzila. 

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