Section 27(1)(b) of South Africa’s Constitution states that “everyone has the right to have access to sufficient water” and Section 27(2) requires the State to take reasonable legislative and other measures, within its available resources, to achieve the progressive realisation of the right.”
Our Bill of Rights, cannot be made hollow by government’s failure to meet the basics.
People drinking from the same troughs as animals, schools and businesses closed because of water outages. Taps running dry for weeks, months and even years. People forced to make toilets in open fields because there’s no water to flush their toilets. That is the state of our province.
People have taken to the streets in protest of this crisis, and some have even lost their lives in pursuit of water.
In 2019, the Provincial Master Water plan was initiated to address KZN’s water crisis. The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) criticised the plan, calling it an ambitious document that lacked detail around implementation.
The SAHRC stated the following:
1. The plan was unrealistic and did not take into account that along the way there would be unavoidable challenges such as natural disasters.
• To date there are flood damages that have still not been repaired.
2. The Provincial Master Water Plan failed to address how maintenance issues would be tackled.
• According to the Auditor-General, on average, municipalities spent only 3.9% on repairs and maintenance, falling short of the 8% norm set by National Treasury.
3. The plan did not outline how interventions and bulk projects would be monitored and evaluated.
• There is no information on proposed interventions and bulk projects named in the plan. Word on the ground is that some have even been abandoned after billions of Rands were spent on them.
4. The plan did not anticipate or prepare for corruption and maladministration;
• Criminal syndicates are accused of not just capitalising on the existing water crisis, but actively sabotaging municipal water supply systems. Tanker mafia have been reported in eThekwini but to date there are no updates on any arrests.
Recently we heard of the embezzlement of funds that were meant to be used to build a reservoir in Jozini. This would have serviced 2 400 homes. The project began in 2019 and the reservoir remains empty. KZN CoGTA MEC, Thulasizwe Buthelezi must be commended for exposing this corruption and officials must be dealt with.
The reality is that KZN has had a high threshold for corruption and maladministration. Officials and politicians were found with their hands in the cookie jar, but nothing happened to them. They continued to have access, if not directly then behind the scenes. KZN’s GPU must deal decisively with such criminals. The MEC of Public Works has demonstrated how we should deal with the tanker mafia and other syndicates that sabotage our water.
The recent AG’s report stated that the quality of many financial statements remained poor, with municipalities and their entities obtaining unqualified opinions only after they had addressed material findings identified during the audit. The Provincial Master Water Plan (PMWP) did not anticipate and provide mechanisms to deal with the level of maladministration and corruption entrenched in KZN and.
5. The Water plan relied on the ability of municipalities to implement efficient service delivery
• 33% of KZN municipalities tabled unfunded budgets due to inadequate budgeting practices and unrealistic debt-collection targets. These poor financial management practices have had a direct and detrimental effect on service delivery initiatives and the overall financial health and performance of our municipalities.
While water is a national competency with certain budgetary constraints, it is clear where the real problems lie.
Local governments hold executive authority over water and sanitation services, but they cannot be left to operate without oversight. KZN’s water crisis is largely “self-inflicted” by municipal mismanagement. It is a man-made crisis.
The solution is not simply a takeover of municipal responsibilities. Instead, there needs to be a cooperative approach with stringent oversight by those elected to ensure that KZN delivers to its people.
The PWMP only works in theory and it is therefore imperative that it be reviewed and revised in order to deliver water to KZN’s people.