[WATCH] “Government gazette forces us into immediate water restrictions,” says Polokwane Mayor
Polokwane's Mayor, Thembi Nkadimeng, along with other councillors met with the board of Lepelle Northern Water regarding ongoing water shortages in the city.
POLOKWANE – “2018/2019 has not been a good period for Polokwane in terms of water supply.” These were the words of Polokwane Mayor, Thembi Nkadimeng when asked about the water situation in Polokwane.
Nkadimeng says she, along with other councillors, met with the board of Lepelle Northern Water (LNW) recently to express its dissatisfaction with regards to insufficient water supply to the Polokwane Municipality.
“The board was able to tell us that 62% of its infrastructure is old and is running around 17 years beyond its lifespan. That, in turn, results in constant breakdowns and a need for repairs,” she explained.
She further added that not enough funding is available to repair the aged infrastructure. “We are literally in a fix and what seems to worsen the situation is that government has gazetted that we receive 20% less water due to climatic conditions and no rain.”
Nkadimeng says LNW is supposed to supply Polokwane with 90 mega-litres per day but are only supplying around 67 mega-litres. “Due to the gazette issued by government, we will receive less and that forces us into water restrictions,” she concluded.
Raeesa Sempe is a Caxton Award-winning Digital Editor with nine years’ experience in the industry. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Media Studies from the University of the Witwatersrand and started her journey as a community journalist for the Polokwane Review in 2015. She then became the online journalist for the Review in 2016 where she excelled in solidifying the Review’s digital footprint through Facebook lives, content creation and marketing campaigns. Raeesa then moved on to become the News Editor of the Bonus Review in 2019 and scooped up the Editorial Employee of the Year award in the same year. She is the current Digital Editor of the Polokwane Review-Observer, a position she takes pride in. Raeesa is married with one child and enjoys spending time with friends, listening to music and baking – when she has the time. “I still believe that if your aim is to change the world, journalism is a more immediate short-term weapon." – Tom Stoppard
