West residents threaten rates, rent boycott for poor service delivery

Residents west of Pretoria have threatened to boycott rent and rates so long as they are not receiving services.

“We will start by boycotting September rent until our demands are met,” said Lotus Gardens, Atteridgeville and Saulsville civic association (Lasca) chairperson, Tshepo Mahlangu.

“If the demands are not met within this month, we will have no option but to continue until we have a meeting with Rand Water, Eskom and the Tshwane metro.”

Lasca demands a meeting with the heads of the various Tshwane finance departments – Ronny Shilenge, Lesiba Thupudi, Mankwana Thobakgale, Nthabiseng Mokete – and MMC for utilities services and regional operations Themba Fosi.

“This is pure politics and sabotage for power. Residents are not prioritised and it is a clear demonstration of arrogance, power-mongering, incompetency, corruption and maladministration,” Mahlangu continued.

Fosi announced this week that reservoirs in Laudium and Atteridgeville are empty due to inadequate supply from Rand Water.

Atteridgeville residents especially have felt the pinch, with many having to collect water from tankers in buckets.

David Makhasa (36) a Mathe Street resident said: “The water shortage is caused by poor management of infrastructure and lack of resources for upgrades and maintenance. I get sick from drinking contaminated water.”

Another resident also voiced his concerns regarding the health risks associated with the water shortage.

“Without water, we are unable to take our medication thus putting our lives at risk. We can’t use our toilet facilities as we cannot flush which is a health hazard as well with flies all over our houses,” said Atteridgeville resident, Raymond Kgobane.

The metro and Rand Water have been playing the blame game regarding the matter. The metro claimed Rand Water was responsible while the latter claimed the city had exceeded its quota and refused to restrict supply to its customers or warned them to use water sparingly.

The shortages have hurt the metro and residents.

Atteridgeville ward 71 councillor Phasha Phasha believed this crisis was the responsibility of the DA-led coalition.

“By the city failing dismally to apprehend this water crisis, it creates much difficulty and inconvenience to the residents,” Phasha stated.

“The DA-led coalition government is just a mess of the highest note because they are not proactive in responding to such an envisaged situation, they are always chasing after the event which makes them the Micky Mouse of them all.

“The city is on autopilot, to be precise. Rand Water is always updating the city concerning any water complications whether on the matter related to maintenance or dams capacity.”

Ward 1 councillor Leon Kruyshaar however blamed Rand Water.

“It seems as though Rand Water has been limiting supply to the Hercules East reservoir, which is the mother of the other reservoirs in the area. Hercules West feeds off of it and several other smaller ones which supply water to Pretoria Gardens, Kirkney and so forth,” Kruyshaar said.

“Once Hercules East doesn’t get the water that we are paying Rand Water for as per our agreement then we suffer because demand outstrips supply and that’s the main issue.”

Kruyshaar also asserted that the metro is prioritising the issue though the ongoing illegal strike has caused challenges.

“We also have a problem with water leaks, with the current illegal strike, which was supposed to have stopped but hasn’t. We have fewer boots on the ground to cover all the areas that need work,” Kruyshaar continued.

Rekord spoke to the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) on the impact of the water shortages on the metro and residents.

“In the short term, the risks of no water access are mostly experienced through sanitation and hygiene, which can create public health risks such as cholera,” said Prof Tafadzwa Mabhaudhi, research group leader for sustainable and resilient food systems at IWMI.

“Given the high levels of population density, especially in the townships and informal settlements, this can quickly spread and lead to outbreaks. This can also affect young women and girls’ menstrual health due to lack of access to water for hygiene.”

The IWMI said that there are no immediate risks to the reliability of the water supply, however, the ageing infrastructure, vandalism, and water leaks must be urgently addressed.

Mabhaudhi stated that this is not a problem unique to Tshwane but something many municipalities across South Africa are experiencing due to inadequate budgeting for new infrastructure, operations and maintenance.

The IWMI said the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) had indicated that about 37% of treated water supplied to municipalities over the past 10 years was lost to network leaks.

This represents significant non-revenue water losses. This is attributed, in part, to increased supply, deteriorating and collapsing infrastructure in municipalities, and a lack of capacity in municipalities to maintain the existing infrastructure.

“It is worth noting that a significant portion of water losses is through leakages and burst pipes. In the immediate term, this affects communities’ access to water, which is a constitutional right.

“In the medium term, it creates public health risks either through the use of contaminated water as people fetch water from rivers and other sources. Burst pipes also lead to standing water bodies which also create risks for other diseases such as malaria as mosquitoes may have breeding grounds,” Mabhaudhi said.

The IWMI reported to be working on smart water management solutions such as satellite and drone imagery to detect leaks.

Residents are encouraged to conserve water, fix leaks and report burst pipes immediately.

At the time of publication, the metro has yet to respond to inquiries about the Lasca boycott threat.

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