POLOKWANE – After all other avenues have been exhausted, the DA in Limpopo on Monday morning filed an official complaint with the Public Protector of South Africa against the Polokwane Municipality following the local authority’s continued failure to provide a sustainable and reliable water supply to its residents.

DA caucus leader in the municipality, Johan Retters was accompanied by provincial leader Lindy Wilson and said in a media release that, for years, residents of the city have endured prolonged water outages, inconsistent supply, collapsing infrastructure and a complete lack of accountability from those entrusted with service delivery.

“Entire neighbourhoods have gone days and in some instances weeks without water. This is not only a gross violation of basic human dignity but a direct failure of governance,” Retters said.

He emphasised that residents of the city do not care about political excuses, intergovernmental disputes or endless technical reports and the blame game between water authorities. They care about one simple constitutional right, access to clean, running water.

“The ongoing crisis has placed unbearable pressure on households, schools, healthcare facilities and local businesses,” Retters added. “We call on the relevant authorities to act swiftly and decisively. The people of Polokwane deserve answers. They deserve accountability. And above all, they deserve water,” Retters reiterated and assured that the DA remains committed to fighting for clean governance, proper oversight and the restoration of basic services in Polokwane.

The municipality’s only attempt to mitigate the situation was to deploy water tankers but the effort has provided no solution. There are just not enough tankers to reach the entire community and some residents even claim that water is only delivered at addresses where residents are prepared to provide “a token of gratitude”.

A request for comment was filed with the municipality but no response was received at time of going to print.