There can be no doubt that the action by the thugs who have cut off the water to the Estcourt town is criminal both in terms of rights embedded in the Constitution but also in terms of the desperate needs for all South Africans to be supplied with potable water for the combat of Covid-19 infections.
The cutting off of water supplies is inhumane in the extreme and requires very robust and immediate action on the part of the weak and ANC controlled Uthukela District Municipality to ensure that the water supplies are not interrupted and that the key water control points are properly safeguarded from any further sabotage by criminals who clearly only have their own interests at heart.
The Democratic Alliance calls upon the labour unions involved in industrial action which it seems clear has been the cause of water supplies being cut off to ensure that their members are not involved in any illegal activity that may cause the interruption of water supplies. If the labour unions persist with their irrational and unreasonable demands and industrial action they must be held accountable for the consequent health disaster that is highly likely at this time of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The supply of water is a basic right and the DA calls upon the Uthukela Municipality to immediately call in contractors to restore water supplies to the Estcourt town and any other areas where water has been cut off. The Uthukela Municipality must immediately appoint short-term security services to ensure that the water supply system is kept operational and that the supply of water is not sabotaged.