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As Windsorton Station in Warrenton enters its second month without water, the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Northern Cape is making an urgent appeal to the Magareng municipality to review the emergency procurement policy that is currently standing in the way of a sustainable supply of water to residents.

This comes as a resolution prohibiting municipal officials from purchasing fuel in containers, other than municipal vehicles, is preventing the municipality from supplying fuel to a generator, to pump water from the submersible pump.

Taking into account the level of corruption and theft of government property in Magareng, the DA understands the basis for this resolution. However, Magareng’s failure to take action in respect of the water crisis makes the resolution nothing more than a poor excuse for the municipality’s very serious service delivery failure.

Since the solar panels for the submersible pump at the station were stolen on 28 May 2021, the municipality made no effort to replace the stolen solar panels of the pump, or to supply water, leaving residents to beg for water from nearby farmers. The municipality also made no attempt to assist with an alternative means by which to pump the water, as was done in the past when generators and fuel were supplied for that very purpose.

While residents themselves have since managed to secure a generator to power the pump, the sustainable supply of water has been affected by the community’s lack of funds for fuel and the municipality’s ridiculous prohibition on procuring fuel for the generator.

In effect, it has only been the DA that has supported the community throughout the water crisis. It was the DA that requested for a criminal case to be made in respect of the theft of the solar panels, the DA that on occasion supplied water to residents at our own costs, and even the DA that procured fuel for the generator at our own cost.

Magareng municipality’s lack of care for its citizens is disgraceful.

In the short term, Magareng must hurriedly amend regulations to make provision for the emergency procurement of fuel. In the long term, residents must vote out the uncaring ANC-run municipality and replace it with a DA-run municipality that cares about ensuring a sustainable water supply for residents, and that gets things done.

Issued by The DA