The human rights of Matjhabeng residents are being violated by the Matjhabeng Municipality’s poor planning and failure to implement consequence management.
Matjhabeng has been experiencing water disruptions for more than three years now, due to non-payment of the bulk water supply bill from the previous distributor Sedibeng Water, now Bloem Water.
According to George Michalakis, DA member of parliament, the ANC-run provincial and national governments owe the Matjhabeng Local Municipality more than R150 million in debt.
Of this amount, R39,9 million is debt owed by the national government and R77,5 million is owed by the provincial government, with an additional R33,8 million owed to Matjhabeng by the Department of Education.
“Residents of Matjhabeng have been left without water for extended periods of time due to failing infrastructure,” says Michalakis.
The outstanding R150 million could have been used to, among others, provide Bloem Water with its bulk water infrastructure budget for roughly three years.
This is highlighted by a number of water leaks in the municipal infrastructure, which costs the municipality roughly R324 million a year.
It is estimated that 56% of all bulk water that the municipality gets billed for, literally goes down the drain.
“The failure of government structures to pay their municipal debt is unacceptable and has a direct negative effect on service delivery. While residents face service delivery restrictions for non-payment, it appears that “Big Brother” is not subjected to the same levels of harassment,” Michalakis concludes.
Dr Igor Scheurkogel, DA caucus leader in Matjhabeng, says the residents’ rights have been continuously violated “due to poor planning and the complete lack of consequence management.”
