By Luvuyo Mjekula
Ageing infrastructure is behind the constant water outages plaguing Makana residents and the municipality needs money and resources to replace nearly 500km of old water pipes.
This was stated by mayor Yandiswa Vara at a media briefing at the City Hall yesterday (Tuesday).
The municipality organised the briefing following recent national media reports citing Makhanda residents’ struggles due to severe water outages.
Vara, municipal manager Pumelelo Kate, council Speaker Mtutuzeli Matyumza, mayoral committee member and ward councillor Ramie Xonxa and acting infrastructure director Makaya Dungu, attended the briefing.
Concerned members of the public and local religious leaders were also present.
Vara said it was important to also set the record straight in light of misinformation spreading in the public space.
The mayor said one of the professional engineers seconded to the municipality by the Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) department, confirmed that 90% of Makana’s water pipe network had ‘long reached its design life in major pipe replacement agencies’.
“This has a negative bearing on our sustainability of water supply, as frequent interruptions are experienced in the form of pipe bursts. Almost on average, three pipe bursts a day are experienced, which leads to intermittent water supply.”
“In order for us as a municipality to address this problem of water outages and burst pipes, we need financial resources to be invested in both water and sanitation infrastructure replacement.”
Vara said work had already started to replace burst pipes on the western side of the town. “We have just completed phase two and are now going to start with our phase three. We need resources to be invested in Makana.”
According to Vara, the municipality needs money and other resources to replace about 490 kilometres of asbestos pipes.
“Currently, the municipality is only relying on municipal infrastructure grants, which is less than R30m. We are getting less than R30 million per financial year, and the water services infrastructure grant, which we know is basic, has not gone beyond R20 million.”
She stated that the municipality has enough water to supply its residents, but old infrastructre scuppers progress. “We have been experiencing some serious water challenges recently, which have caused a number of water pipes to burst due to old and devastated infrastructure.”
Vara said the municipality was losing nearly eight megalitres of water every day due to the problem [of old infrastructure]. “This critical situation was precipitated by two non-functional pumps at the James Kleynhans Water Treatment Works.”
“Unfortunately, the municipality is prone to major water needs every other day due to the old infrastructure that we have. Although water supply is open to everyone, we are still aware that there are still areas, especially that are in high-lying areas in the eastern side of the town, that are still experiencing water outages whilst the other residents are receiving water.
“Hence, we have people that would say it’s been five weeks without water or two weeks without water. And you wonder why, because the provision of water is only in places where there are major pipes and the best pipes.”
The mayor explained that attending to water spillages due to burst pipes takes time because the municipality does not have a local supply of parts and have to source parts from out of the province at times. “And it’s even a struggle to get the fittings, because the manner or the types of our pipe infrastructure is no longer manufactured on our currency. So it’s a struggle. At times, most of the adjustments need to be done, because we have access to those pipes that are broken and there is no fittings to address that.
“Hence, it takes a day or two days to address that. The municipality has addressed or has identified quick wins, which includes lower night pressure and focus on aggressively fixing and repairing water leaks.”
The mayor told journalists: “Currently, despite the challenges that are there, we are reporting that the provision of water is on a daily basis. That on its own, tells you that there is work being done.”
She said water on the western side of town was open 24/7, but major pipe burst cause frequent water outages.
Vara commended Cogta for providing support in the form of two professional engineers. “Without them, it wouldn’t have been possible to address the water outages in Makana, given the extent of the water challenges.”
One of the engineers, Dungu, also addressed the briefing about the quality of water provided by the municipality, while the second one had to leave Makhanda, allegedly after receiving threats.
However, Vara dispelled any rumours of threats against the engineer, who was brought in to help fix the problem of widespread water leaks. She said the engineer had taken a break from work.
In the meantime, the municipality was deploying its limited resources to identify unknown leaks and other causes of water outages. “At times, you have a situation where out of all areas, you have five houses that do not get water whilst the whole area is getting water.”
The mayor also admitted that resolving the water problems would take time. “It is not something that we are going to overcome overnight, the issue of water challenges.”
She assured the Makana community they were working around the clock to alleviate the dire situation.
“We won’t rest until the provision of water in all Makana areas is [available]24/7.”
Vara pleaded with Makana residents to be patient with the municipality. “I would like to plead with the communities of Makana to please bear with us. We understand it’s not right not to have water in your house, because it is a human right. We are doing all that we can to ensure that you get water on a daily basis. And we don’t rest the minute we are told that there is no water. The minute I open every morning at 5 o’clock, I’ll open the tap at 6 o’clock, I’m going back at 7 o’clock. Then after 7, I’ll call the director,” Vara told journalists.
She said they understood water is a human right. “As a municipality, we don’t intend not to honor that. Our aim is to provide our communities with water.”
But in this journey, we need your full participation. Your participation in areas where there is no water. Please alert your ward councilor or tell us immediately.”
She added that the municipality would continue to send water tanks out to affected areas.
Vara also refuted claims she resides in Gqeberha. She stressed that she lives in Joza with her family members and has no property in Gqeberha.
Grocott’s Mail also spoke to members of the clergy who attended the briefing to show solidarity to the affected communities while showing support to the municipality’s efforts to resolve the water problems. Bishop Phumelele Koliti, reverend Otto Ntshanyana and Father Lithemba Busakwe are the executive committee of the Makhanda Minister’s Fraternal.
Busakwe said: “We have been made aware of the root causes of what is happening in Makhanda. And that is our interest – why are we here, how did we reach this particular stage of this particular crisis? Some of these things have been alluded to – the old infrastructure in particular.
“But there are other things that the municipality needs to work on – and that is monitoring of personnel so that duties assigned to people [are carried through], and that people should account and they are held accountable where they are not doing right, from your general worker up to the top.”
