This comes after protests in Nkowankowa where Bankuna Street was blocked with burning tyres to express their anger on Monday. The protesters resorted to going straight to the municipal offices on Tuesday morning. The protesters are residents of Cosmo Section, N1 Street, and Xirhombarhoma Street, and they say some have had water for weeks. The protesters say that the municipality told them that the water problem is due to load shedding, but that they are tired of dry taps.

“The problem is that we do not have water at all, because we only get water once in a while. We do not want to be addressed by the manager of the mayor’s office, Cassius Machimana, we want the mayor himself to address us. The mayor has been sending Machimana for a long time to help us, and he never did anything, we don’t want to hear from him,” said Elizabeth Shingange, Cosmo Section resident. The Mopani District Municipality (MDM) spokesperson Odas Ngobeni said that the Greater Tzaneen Municipality is responsible for water reticulation in Nkowankowa.

“We have communicated the challenge with regard to the Nkowankowa Water Treatment Works. GTM is responsible for water reticulation in Nkowankowa, and they are busy checking if the problem is not related to valves and pipes which may be blocked,” he said. Neville Ndlala from Greater Tzaneen Municipality said that they work hand-in-hand with MDM. “We share the responsibility to provide water to the people, the two complement each other, and each has a certain responsibility.

“The current bulk of load shedding has affected the production of water, especially at the Nkowankowa water plant, which also affects everything. We have seen that the community is angry because they have no water, which we understand, there have been roadblocks due to their dissatisfaction with how the issue is handled, but I must point out that this load shedding has really affected us on the ability to provide water,” said Ndlala. “Secondly, because of the desperate situation, and we know that water is a basic need, we have people who are sabotaging our systems,” Ndalal added.

Also read: ‘We want water’ – protests flare up in Nkowankowa

“From time to time our valves are being tampered with, which leads to certain areas not getting water, simply because somebody wants to get water in a certain area. So even when we try to balance the situation on that issue, we always have individuals who are still fiddling with our systems,” Ndlala explained. He also said that the water treatment in Nkowankowa has the capacity of 24 megalitres (ML), but at the moment there are about 14 and 15 megalitres, which he says is a bit over half of the normal amount.

According to Ndlala this means that they cannot fill the reservoirs which reduce the pressure, so there is a competing number that they have to deal with. He further said that there are engagements between the residents, GTM and MDM to make sure that they resolve the problem soon. According to MDM, the sustained electricity supply disruptions had a negative effect on the water treatment capacity of both the Nkowankowa Water Works in the Greater Tzaneen Municipality and the Giyani Water Works in the Greater Giyani Municipality.

“Water production at the two water treatment works has been affected negatively and thus also affecting supply. The backup generators installed at these plants have not functioned optimally to mitigate this challenge. However, we are working to resolve the challenge and find a permanent solution,” said Ngobeni in a statement on Monday. He said that water tankers will be dispatched to the affected areas, particularly the high-lying areas, in consultation with the two local municipalities.

“The electricity supply disruption also affects pumping to reservoirs, our booster pump stations, and water distribution. This leaves most people without water or with low pressure, especially in the high lying areas,” said Ngobeni.