Thousands of litres of water go to waste almost every day at the Mamelodi hostel blocks, despite ongoing reporting of leaks, claim residents.

According to the residents, leaks have been present for over a decade and have already caused severe damage to the older hostel buildings.

A resident of one of the hostels, Simon Mokoena, said the water leaks need to be taken very seriously, as every hostel block has leaks in pipes, taps, showers and toilets.

“The water leaks run down all the hostel blocks to the end blocks, near Sun Valley [and the water then] floods Boundary Drive,” said Mokoena.

He added that they have lost count of how many times they have reported the water leaks to the metro.

According to him, only a few taps are working properly, and the residents have tried to repair the above-ground pipes, but they are unable to fix the underground leaks.

Another resident, Thabo Masetla, said residents have resorted to trying to fix almost everything for themselves.

Masetla said they have reached the point where they feel that reporting is just a waste of time.

“They don’t respond to our cries, and this thing has been going on for four years. We walk on bricks to avoid getting into the mud,” he said.

He recalled a time when hostel-dwellers handed out letters to be sent to the metro regarding the leaks, but the metro never responded to those letters.

“We just hope Tshwane metro has not lost hope or no longer cares about hostel dwellers.”

Other issues that the hostel residents complain about are the state of the hostel blocks and the presence of drug addicts, who allegedly use the hostel blocks as a hideout.

Councillor Saul Ratau said this is not the first time they have reported the water leaks and the living conditions in the hostel blocks.

Ratau said the municipal workers came and repaired the leaks, but there is still much work that needs to be done to make the hostels liveable.

Tshwane metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo confirmed the metro has received complaints from several Mamelodi Hostel residents, including the ward councillor.

Mashigo said the major water leak between Blocks D and E was addressed and resolved last year.

He said that the metro acknowledges that living conditions in the Old Mamelodi Hostels remain challenging.

“A service request to repair water leaks and toilets at the Temporary Residential Units (TRUs) was logged and escalated to the City of Tshwane’s Group Property: Building Maintenance Section for intervention,” said Mashigo.

He said the matter remains under active follow-up to ensure it is addressed as speedily as possible.

“The Gauteng Department of Human Settlements has committed to undertaking major emergency maintenance at the Mamelodi Hostel,” he said.

Owing to an expanded scope of work identified during planning, the project experienced delays and is now expected to begin in the third quarter of the 2025/26 financial year.

Mashigo added that with regard to water leaks in Blocks D and E at the Mamelodi Hostels, these were linked to a broken manhole cover and pipe.

Given the ageing state of the infrastructure and low rental recovery levels, the city is currently prioritising emergency maintenance interventions within the confines of the approved budget.

In addition, the metro has developed an Urban Development Framework (UDF) for the Mamelodi Hostel precinct.

The UDF outlines a long-term vision for the redevelopment of the hostels and their integration into the broader urban fabric through mixed-housing development.

This would provide a structured, phased approach to redeveloping the hostel precinct and surrounding areas into a fully integrated human settlement with improved housing options and access to socio-economic services.

The total estimated development cost for the entire Mamelodi Hostels precinct is between R1.2-billion and R1.5-billion.

The redevelopment is planned as a multi-year programme, and the city is actively exploring various funding models and partnership arrangements to support implementation.

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