Honourable Speaker

The department of water affairs is extremely active within the country and
one of those departments that carry a heavy responsibility, as they are
tasked with providing access to clean, drinkable water to our people. Post
1994, the department has ensured that more people have access to water than
ever before and for this it must be applauded.

We must also congratulate the Rand, Umgeni and other water boards that have
excelled in providing our communities with access to clean water.
Access to water is still a major issue, especially for rural areas, where
infrastructure is mostly not upgraded, which forces people to still travel
long distances in order to obtain water. Urban areas are also experiencing
major water shortages, with the department seemingly incapable of keeping up
with water demands as populations in the cities grow. A lack of qualified
individuals, poor maintenance of infrastructure and an absence of political
will has ensured that the department is constantly reacting to many water
situations instead of proactively dealing with them.

Without proper infrastructure,we will constantly be faced with residents
around the country experiencing major water shortages. Rustenburg residents
had no water for 10 days, while those in Louis Trichardt faced 27 days
without it. For those 27 days, hospital equipment could not be cleaned,
exposing people to infections and sewage flowed constantly in the street and
public toilets, were forced to close.
Recently, the North Gauteng High Court has ordered the municipal manager of
the Vhembe District Municipality, Mr. Masala Makumule, to restore water to
the community of Makhado in Limpopo within 90 days, because areas within
these municipalities have been experiencing water shortages for years, while
some have been completely without water for months. The municipality uses
tankers to supply water to the areas, but residents do not know their
delivery schedules. It is disturbing that municipalities have to be taken to
court in order for them to do what they are elected to do.

Community members have been expressing major concerns about water being
wasted due to the lack of action from municipalities in fixing leaking water
pipes, specifically after countless reports have been sent to those in
charge. There is an extreme lack of leadership to implement the national
department's vision locally, because more time is spent in denying the
existence of problem than actually fixing them. If community members see
that there is no actual action being taken to improve the supply of water,
how can they support the department's major plans for water conservation?

Poor regulation of water treatment plants ensures that not only do water
shortages increase, but also the purification of polluted water does not
occur. Factories and other major businesses are the main culprits when it
comes to polluting our water supplies, but due to economic interests, some
of them arenot held responsible for their actions and the main blame for
polluting our water is shifted to households. If nothing is done about
really cleaning up our rivers and stopping polluters, the water shortages
will turn into a major crisis, which will result in the department desiring
to build more dams and treatment facilities, the cost of which will be
pushed onto the consumer - this cannot be allowed to happen.

The actions of the department to improve our water supply are commendable,
but in order to ensure that we do not end up having a water crisis, water
conservation must be taken seriously by municipalities more than private
households.

With no follow through on improving infrastructure and dealing with water
issues in communities urgently, municipalities have ended up as the biggest
culprits when it comes to wasting water.

The IFP supports the budget vote

I Thank You