‘Whole system collapsed’

A sea of raw sewage spillages welcomes you in Welkom’s township of Thabong in the Matjhabeng Local Municipality. Stagnant sewage, which has turned green, in Constantia Road stretches about 50 m so, in front of the Lenakeng Technical School and the Kgotso Pula Nala Centre, as well as the hostel dwelling. Unpleasant sewage spillages of a blocked manhole can be seen flowing freely down the road in question as the promise of quality service to residents appears unrealistic in the near future. The photo attests to the daily struggle of motorists to navigate through sewage. Photo: Teboho Setena

Ventersburg, Hennenman, Odendaalsrus and especially the suburb of Riebeeckstad are continually plagued by severe water problems.

Either the water is cut off, or Thabong and Hennenman are subjected to water­shedding to allow battling reservoirs to fill up to feed towns like Ventersburg and surrounds with a few drops of water.

To add to this misery, this week the beleaguered Sedibeng Water announced that it was disbanding, and that Matjhabeng would now be serviced by the even more embattled Bloem Water.

Senzo Mchunu, minister of Water and Sanitation, will visit Matjhabeng on Friday (04/02) to discuss this and other matters to divert future cuts in water supply to Matjhabeng.

Sewage is another major problem in Matjhabeng, and sewage is literally flooding streets and houses all over the municipality.

One of the adversely affected areas is the main entrance to Thabong at the Lenakeng Technical High School.

The residents here are also regularly subjected to watershedding and water cut offs.

“Thabong is being ‘watershedded’ to pick up the reservoir levels in other areas like Ventersburg. The sewerage situation is dire and has been reported many times,” says Piet Botha, caucus chair for the DA.

“The whole system has collapsed and must be replaced. Many areas, not just Thabong, are affected and that is why there are so many pumps all over the city.

“According to the executive mayor an amount of R2,4 billion has been allocated to Matjhabeng to replace the worn out water and sewerage systems.”

Khojane Matutle, manager of communications marketing and branding for the Matjhabeng Municipality, says the interruption of water supply to Riebeeckstad, Hennenman and Ventersburg is a result of sabotage to Sedibeng Water pipelines and investigations are underway to find the culprits and address the challenge.

“As indicated previously, the ministerial team comprising of several ministers and the presidency have earmarked Matjhabeng as one of the pilot projects to assist the ailing municipality with aging infrastructure, particularly pertaining to sewage and water challenges. Matjhabeng will soon receive a grant funding to manage those projects.

“We are confident that in no time, the construction and refurbishment of sewage plants and water lines will be launched, providing a long-lasting solution,” says Matutle.