Water crisis due to incompetence and whopping R39m debt
Areas of Hartbeespoort have been without water for the past six days and the Madibeng municipality has an alleged debt of almost R40 million.
Weeds grow in the filtration beds. Picture: Kormorant.
Schoemansville has been suffering a water crisis since last Friday after a water pump at the purification plant broke down and the Schoemansville reservoir could not be filled, Kormorant reports.
DA ward councillor Maritza du Plessis said: “During a visit to the purification plant in Schoemansville with the director of technical services Madibeng, we found that one of the two raw water pumps were broken, and two of the four filtration beds are non-operational. Weeds are growing metres high in the beds. The scaling in the pipes is approximately 4cm thick and reduces the diameter of the pipes significantly.”
The pump was later fixed, but with residents filling water tanks and watering gardens, the reservoir level remains low. On top of that, water cannot be pumped to the reservoir when loadshedding takes place.
In the meantime, Rand Water has choked the water supply to Hartbeespoort due to the Madibeng municipality’s failure to pay its debt.
DA councillor Erna Rossouw said: “As far as we could establish, Madibeng paid Rand Water amounts of R3.5 million and R6 million this week but according to the water supplier, the municipality will have to pay another R39 million before they open the taps again.
“Not the municipal manager nor the mayor or chief financial officer answer their phones.”
The Madibeng municipality has not yet responded to the Kormorant’s enquiry.
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