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Water woes in Emthanejni municipality have again left residents of Hanover and De Aar high and dry, exposing the municipality’s ongoing failure to address long outstanding water infrastructure issues.

The DA has asked the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) to investigate, given a growing lack of confidence in the municipality to resolve the water challenges.

Worst affected areas in Hanover have been without water for over a week, while other areas in Hanover and De Aar are experiencing very low water pressure or intermittent water supply. 

Water challenges, and low reservoir levels, are occurring in spite of above average rainfall of over 750 mm during the rainy season, pointing to infrastructure-related faults and a lack of maintenance.

At one stage, at least 17 boreholes pumps in De Aar, which are meant to feed water to the reservoirs, were simultaneously broken. Some have since been repaired. Pumps in Hanover were also meant to be replaced last week Thursday already, but still nothing has been done.

Other than the municipality passing the buck and blaming loadshedding, which is aggravating low water levels, communities are not getting answers. Residents, who have been experiencing similar water challenges for two years already, are increasingly frustrated.

DA constituency head of Bo-Karoo, Fawzia Rhoda, has written to the DWS. We call on them for an urgent a fact-finding mission to Emthanjeni, so that water-related challenges can be better mitigated now, to ensure sustainable provision of water supply ahead of the scorching summer months.

Access to water is a basic human right, as enshrined in the constitution, and no municipality may deprive residents of this right through their own lack of service delivery.

Issued by Gerhard Engelbrecht, Cllr - Emthanjeni Municipality