SOWETAN | Dry taps the new normal

The provision of clean drinking water ought to be what every citizen expects from their government as a bare minimum.

Yet, the stories of taps running dry in various communities as municipalities struggle with aging infrastructure and supply issues are becoming the norm.

Some communities go for as long as months without clean running water at great risk to health and livelihoods. This week were reported on the residents of Ekangala in  Bronkhorstspruit, Tshwane, who said they have been without water for more than three months because of a broken water pump at their water treatment plant.

The area is one of three townships in the far east of Pretoria that have been battling with intermittent water supply since last year. The cause of their problems, according to the City of Tshwane, is a series of pump breakdowns at the treatment plant, which now need replacing.

While the city has assured the affected communities that it has made restoration of water supply its priority, anecdotes from residents on how long they have been struggling suggest very little is being done.

Small businesses in the township who rely on water supply for their operations have been the hardest hit, with one salon owner telling this newspaper: “Customers are not happy about this, and it means I lose them. I had to close the salon for some hours to go and source water.”

Such is the impact that the problem, which has been allowed to persist, is having on the livelihood of others. And that’s just one business. How far the ripple effect of this will be felt is hard to know.

 What is clear though is that when a municipality fails to guarantee delivery of a basic service such as clean running water to residents, it can have devastating consequences.  

The failure to deliver clean running water by the City of Tshwane to communities have before attracted national outrage following an outbreak of cholera in Hammanskraal. We should not wait until another disaster strikes before raising our voice about ongoing water supply issues to communities.

But Tshwane is not alone in this predicament as taps also ran dry in various parts of Joburg this week due to maintenance-related problems. Residents deserve to know that they can trust their government to deliver basic services reliably.