VEREENIGING – The Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) has lost water to a value of over R3b in the last five financial years, leaving residents grappling with ongoing water outages. This information was revealed by the Gauteng MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Jacob Mamabolo, in a written reply to the DA in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL).
According to the DA Head in the Emfuleni North Constituency, councillor Kingsol Chabalala, this is largely due to the municipality’s failure to properly fix water leaks and maintain ageing water infrastructure.
According to Mamabolo, Emfuleni lost water amounting to R 3 302 264 290 in the past five years.
The breakdown per each financial year is as follows:
*2019/2020 – R601 859 512.58
*2020/2021 – R399 306 729.30
*2021/2022 – R693 454 263.73
*2022/2023 – R771 365 362.99
*2023/2024 – R836 278 422.26
Mamabolo further reveals that the ELM spent R140 899 285 on upgrading water infrastructure in the period under review, which is a small fraction of the cost of money lost through the municipality’s decaying infrastructure.
Chabalala says, “This is unacceptable and points to the long-persisted lack of effective management and sustainable solutions to the municipality’s water crisis.”
“For far too long, the DA has expressed concerns about the failure to maintain the ageing infrastructure, causing significant water losses in this municipality.
Despite our calls to action, not enough has been done to repair the deteriorating infrastructure.
As a result, the residents of Emfuleni continue to experience ongoing water outages. Some residents have gone for months without water,” Chabalala said.
“This situation is a violation of the fundamental human right of Emfuleni residents to access clean and safe drinking water. It is important to remember that last year, Emfuleni residents faced not only dry taps but also raw sewage spilling into the limited available water supply,” he says.
The DA in Gauteng has therefore demanded that Mamabolo, urgently intervene to ensure that Emfuleni fixes the ageing infrastructure and improves water management to stop costly water losses, hold accountable anyone responsible for mismanagement or negligence causing the water crisis and involve the community in decisions and planning regarding water supply and management.
“The DA will not tolerate violations of Emfuleni residents’ rights due to the municipality’s failure to carry out its mandate of building sustainable infrastructure and providing sustainable services. We will continue to pressure COGTA to ensure that the mayor of Emfuleni is held accountable for the ongoing water crisis,” Chabalala concluded.