It should be heaven on Earth. After four years of almost no water, it’s hell

An investigation into allegations of a human rights violation in the Ugu District Municipality, where residents go without water for weeks on end, is at an advanced stage.

The SA Human Rights Commission told Sunday Times Daily that it had initiated an own accord investigation, after the circulation of various media reports on the lack of access to water in the Ugu District Municipality. 

Section 27(1)(b) of the constitution states that everyone has the right to have access to sufficient water.

“The commission has also received in excess of 100 complaints from residents in the Ugu District, which have all been consolidated into the commission’s own initiative investigation. The commission has engaged with the Ugu District Municipality and its investigation is now at an advanced stage,” said SAHRC senior legal officer in KwaZulu-Natal, Pavershree Padayachee.

She denied that the commission had left the matter in the hands of politicians or government, as alleged by angry residents.

For the last four years and counting, we have not had a continuous flow of water in our taps. There have been periods of three to four weeks with not a drop of incoming water.

—  Banners Rest resident Xavier Mahony

“The commission’s investigation of the matter while at an advanced stage is still ongoing. The commission’s individual correspondence to the respective complainants was to merely provide them with a status update on the matter. Further feedback in regard to the proposed action will be announced or provided in due course,” Padayachee said.

She was referring to a letter sent to complainants, which stated that the commission was engaging with various government departments and had referred residents, who complained of fraud and maladministration to the public protector.

Ugu municipal spokesperson France Zama said the municipality did recognise the rights of residents to basic access to water “and as such water relief measures are always in place to provide relief to areas where water supply disruptions exist”.

“And just for the record, the prevalence of water supply disruptions in most cases is compounded by various factors such as ageing infrastructure, sabotage and vandalism of water infrastructure and the ever increasing demand which exceeds the available supply.” 

However, residents are “fed up”. For a fourth consecutive year, “sabotage” of the already ailing water supply infrastructure is holding towns along the KZN coastline from Hibberdene to Harding to ransom.

The municipality says it does not know the identity of the saboteurs, while residents believe the obvious culprits are the over 100 municipal workers, who were dismissed earlier this year for participating in an illegal strike.

However, the SA Municipal Workers Union says that corrupt municipal workers are colluding with contractors to share profits from tenders.

Even police have not found the “third force” that has been smashing water pipes, closing valves, draining reservoirs and setting alight pump stations, to leave hospitals, clinics, schools and homes without water for weeks. Municipal vehicles have been torched, electrical boxes destroyed and waterworks generators burnt.

Hundreds of residents told the Sunday Times Daily that they were forced to buy bottled water to wash dishes, use wet wipes to clean themselves and carry water from swimming pools to do laundry.

Some have put their houses on the market, while many regret the decision to retire at a quiet seaside town along the water-scarce coastline.

Despite being without water for most days, residents still receive unexplained water bills. Dates are often incorrect and some are as high as R185,000 for two days of water.

“I live in Banners Rest, Port Edward in a complex of 40 units. For the last four years and counting, we have not had a continuous flow of water in our taps. There have been periods of three to four weeks with not a drop of incoming water. Nobody has accepted accountability for the situation. The total lack of support from the district and the government is absolutely shocking. We as a community are in dire straits and nobody actually cares,” said Xavier Mahony.

Another resident, Bonnie Burger, said even her children’s schooling was affected by the water crisis.

“My two girls attend the local school in Hibberdene. The school has been begging and pleading with Ugu to supply water to the school but at the moment the one JoJo tank is not enough for all the children. My little one in grade R has picked up a bladder infection and gastro.

“My older daughter in grade 10 has missed school on two different occasions because there is an inadequate water supply in the bathrooms for a teenage girl,” she said.