Ezenzeleni residents demand a clean, 24-hour water supply

Sep 21, 2012 | Ntwaagae Seleka | 3 comments

AT EZENZELENI, a township in Warden, Free State, the taps only have running water for about two hours every day, residents say.

Phumelela local municipality has not explained to them why this is the case, they say.

They claim the problem started two years ago.

Recently residents staged a protest march to the municipal offices to demand answers.

"This is an old problem. We have not received a better explanation. We always make sure to fill containers with water to drink and flush our toilets in those two hours. What is sad is those elderly people living alone who don't have the strength to fill containers with water," resident Bongani Mahlaba said yesterday.

He said they would not stop protesting until they were provided with clean water 24 hours a day.

"The water we are drinking is not clean and at times it stinks. There are two manholes that overflow into the plant and this has been happening for over a year now."

They also complain that sewage pipes frequently burst and flow into the water purification plant.

Resident Elsie Molefe said: "We have been struggling with water since 2010. In most instances, we only receive water at night."

Julia Malakwane said if there was no water, they had to walk to the nearby river to fetch it.

The Free State department of cooperative governance, traditional affairs and human settlements failed to respond to enquiries.