Pretoria - Limpopo villagers have given the government an ultimatum that if they don’t receive water in their taps by next month, they will not go out to vote in the coming local government elections.
Denis Nkwana, 38, from Manoke village, near Burgersfort in Sekhukhune, arrived at the settlement 36 years ago, but has never seen water running through his taps despite continual water constructions in his village.
The village, in Ward 18, is inhabited by mostly unemployed and poor individuals, has vast dry land and ditches where the Department of Water and Sanitation in the province promised to put in pipes to take water to the people in 2008.
Speaking to the Pretoria News at a departmental media tour yesterday, Nkwana, who is unemployed and a father of two, vowed not to vote in the upcoming elections if they do not have basic service delivery within the next month.
He said: “I have nothing free that the government gives me despite me voting for so long for the ANC. Today I have to take out money for water and electricity while I’m unemployed. When I take my CV to them for work, they lose it. What do they expect me to do? I won’t vote.
“I don’t even believe that this project will finish any time soon.”
Another villager, Priscilla Moremi, 34, said she did not know what the hold-up of the water project was.
“Ever since I can remember, the government has been digging trenches and promising us water. It has not happened, and now that the elections are coming they want to dupe us. I’m not voting for anyone.”
The R750 million bulk water project in Sekhukhune was instituted in 2008, but broke ground in 2012 to service at least 17 villages around Burgersfort, businesses and mining companies by 2023.
Acting Sekhukhune District Municipality mayor on the day, Mbusi Mahlangu, promised the community that they would receive water running from their taps within two to three weeks.
“As the district we are the implementing agent of this project, and have to make sure it survives. We have appointed a contractor who has broken ground.”
Mahlangu vowed that the promises to get water to the people were not electioneering.
“We as leaders are duty bound to avail water for our people. It’s just a co-incident that elections are coming up. Otherwise we were implementing the water project anyway."
The department’s acting provincial head, Thivhonali Masindi, decried illegal connections and vandalism for the delays.
“This project is marred by illegal connections and communities vandalising the infrastructure. However, the project itself was not planned to be completed at one stage. There are four phases and we are now in the last phase and nearly complete,” Masindi said.
When asked about the crisis of infrastructure meant to deliver water to villages, department spokesperson Sputnik Ratau said: “As the department we are starting to move away from only working with bulk water.
“We must also be worried if individuals don’t get water into their taps. We need to have a full circle of delivery. So infrastructure development on its own can’t work with timelines. For us the responsibility is to deliver.”
Pretoria News