Durban - The eThekwini Municipality has increased the number of water tankers in areas where residents are experiencing water shortages, eThekwini Mayor, Mxolisi Kaunda said on Tuesday.
In his opening remark at the executive committee meeting at the city hall on Tuesday, MayorKaunda said some of the underlying causes were ageing infrastructure and the increase in population in those particular areas.
He said these shortages have resulted in violent public protests.
“Apart from the fact that there are areas within the city which constantly experience intermittent water supply due to ageing infrastructure and the increase in population, particularly in rural areas, the situation has been worsened by load shedding and cable theft, he said.
A medium to long-term plan has been developed which includes the procurement of standby generators and upgrading of infrastructure. Working with Umgeni Water, we are currently installing standby generators, particularly in pump stations that supply Adams and Mbumbulu. In areas such as Ntuzuma which have large pump stations, we are unable to use standby generators. However, the municipality is intervening by commissioning the Western Aqueduct project which is anticipated to be completed by the end of March,” Kaunda said.
Kaunda took a swipe at opportunist politicians who use the people’s plight to achieve their personal goals.
“There are also those who prepare themselves for the coming local government elections who use these challenges to elevate themselves to positions of leadership. The ageing infrastructure is one of the underlying causes of water challenges in some of these areas but work is done to resolve the problems. This is also exacerbated by the growing population in various areas of the municipality,” Kaunda said.
He further touched on the delays on the Go!Durban project and the return of R309 million allocated for the project to the National Treasury cause it was not used in the 2018/19 financial year.
“With regards to Go! Durban, there has been a number of challenges leading to delays in the project. Some of the delays were caused by objections raised when contractors are appointed. These are internal matters and are being dealt with,” he said.