Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, and large parts of Johannesburg are once again facing days without water due to Rand Water’s planned maintenance. The residents are suffering because there is insufficient communication from the municipalities about the availability of tankers to access water during maintenance.
Rand Water has confirmed that the outages are a result of planned maintenance on the Palmiet system, which supplies the following reservoirs: Sandton, Alexander Park, Randjieslaagte, Linksfield, and Midrand. South Hills Tower will also be affected. Some communities in Tshwane south and east have been struggling with dry taps since the weekend. In Johannesburg, Rembrandt Park is also experiencing low water pressure to no water. The affected municipalities’ water departments and MMCs remain silent, yet councillors bear the blame from residents for water outages.
The Democratic Alliance ( DA) Gauteng demands immediate action. Municipalities must communicate clearly and consistently. They must provide regular updates throughout the day to inform residents of the exact locations and times of water tankers. Municipalities must prioritise fixing leaking pipes and old pumps. The maintenance of infrastructure cannot be deferred as every litre of water lost to leaks or inefficiency is water that should be reaching homes and schools.
In addition, for Rand Water to deliver on its core mandate, municipalities must pay for water. Failure by municipalities to pay affects Rand Water’s ability to maintain infrastructure and water supply is compromised.
The water crisis in Gauteng is not about infrastructure, but rather poor leadership. A DA-led Gauteng provincial government would ensure that every rand allocated for water is used for that, through ringfencing accounts. We will roll out smart water meters and live updates to detect water leaks, enforce strict deadlines for maintenance and repairs and hold officials accountable.
In the meantime, we urge residents to store water where possible, use it sparingly, and stay connected with their ward councillors for tanker schedules and local updates. Water is life and a right for everyone to have access and, it is high time that municipalities started treating it that way.