LIMPOPO – The Let’s Change Ba-Phalaborwa (LCBP) civil rights organisation has raised serious concerns over the Ba-Phalaborwa Municipality’s (BPM) handling of service delivery issues during the festive season.

The organisation claims that residents endured severe water shortages amidst a heatwave with little assistance from BPM or related entities.

In December, LCBP wrote an open letter to various governmental bodies, including the Department of Water and Sanitation, Lepelle Northern Water, Ba-Phalaborwa Municipality, and Mopani District Municipality.

The letter underscored longstanding problems with water shortages, sewage management, and electricity failures, issues that become particularly critical during the high-tourism festive season.

“These failures have caused devastating consequences for our businesses, residents, and families alike,” said LCBP’s Rodger Ferguson. He added that the community faced persistent water outages during extreme heat, compounded by the municipality’s lack of responsiveness.

Ferguson also highlighted suspicions of water theft by tanker operators illegally drawing and selling water.

“This worsens our water problems, and these activities must be addressed,” he said.

DA Cllr Sybrandt de Beer confirmed that parts of Ba-Phalaborwa experienced water shortages in December, though the situation appeared to improve in January.

However, he noted that recent rains have disrupted both water and electricity supplies. He attributed power outages to ageing infrastructure.

“The minute it rains or there’s lightning or wind, the power just goes off.”

De Beer also relayed a statement from Lepelle Northern Water explaining that full rivers were hindering water purification efforts.

BPM spokesperson Jonas Mahesu responded to the allegations, stating that the municipality had teams on standby throughout December to address service delivery issues. He emphasised that emergency contact numbers had been widely advertised, including in the Herald.

“If people did not reach us, it might have been something beyond our control,” he concluded.