Pensioner from eMzinoni pleads for water in RDP house
Taps are dry in house of Mdumiseni Masondo (80), yet the house is flooded with sewage from a nearby manhole.
Life for an 80-year-old pensioner from eMzinoni has become unbearable with recurring sewage spills and the absence of running water.
Mdumiseni Masondo has been living in an RDP house for the past four years after being relocated from the eMzinoni hostel.
Although plumbing infrastructure was installed when he moved in, he claims his home has never had running water.
According to Masondo, he has been forced to rely on neighbours to use their toilets and has collected water from a nearby informal settlement because the taps in his home have remained dry.
“Even though I have a toilet in my house, there is no running water. I have to carry water from the neighbouring informal settlement,” said the aged man.
“How is it that I live in a formal settlement – in a government-subsidised house – but have no water, while there is overflowing sewage?
“Yet those in the informal settlement do have water? My constitutional rights have been violated by those who are supposed to protect them,” said Masondo.
He also alleged that persistent sewage spills around his property have caused cracks to develop in his house and left his home constantly damp.
Masondo said one of the most distressing aspects of his situation is that the floor inside his house is often covered with water even though he has no running water from his taps.
“My house is always full of water on the floor even though there is no water coming from my taps. I have to keep sweeping the water out of the house,” said Masondo.
He first reported this problem to the Govan Mbeki Municipality (GMM) in 2023, but despite several visits by municipal officials, no permanent solution has been provided.
“They just come, inspect the problem and leave without fixing it,” Masondo said.
The elderly resident fears the unhygienic conditions are putting his health at risk.
“My health is at risk because I could develop respiratory illnesses from the unhealthy environment in which I am forced to live. This shows the municipality’s disregard for me.
“I don’t have the money to fix these problems myself, and this is the municipality’s responsibility. Maybe they want me to die first before they can act,” said Masondo.
The pensioner is now appealing to the GMM to urgently repair the damaged sewer infrastructure, address the apparent water connection problem and restore a reliable water supply to his home.
The municipality’s media liaison and content developer, Donald Green, said the matter should be addressed. Access is needed from a manhole situated at a school in the area.
Green said the spill was previously reported on May 8 and was unblocked, then recently reported on July 13.
“Persistent sewage overflow was caused by not getting access to our manhole at Vukanini Primary School because the schools were closed.
“There was no one to open it for the team, and our immediate measures to take are to communicate with the school to give us access even when the schools are closed and on weekends. The sewer line is not problematic and therefore does not need a long-term plan.
“It is just a normal blockage which can be resolved by municipal teams when there is a need,” said Green
He said both the municipality and the school need to work together, as the blockage is mainly caused by tree roots infiltrating the manhole, resulting in blockages.
The school is also responsible for cleaning and maintaining the area around the manhole.
Green said arrangements would be made to ensure the municipality has access to the manhole inside the school grounds at all times, which will help prevent delays in unblocking the sewer lines.
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