Water and Sanitation Minister, Senzo Mchunu, has reassured residents of Giyani that the department is committed to delivering water to the community as promised.

Mchunu visited Giyani on Thursday to monitor the progress made on the Nandoni Water Treatment Plant, Nandoni Bridge and the Nsami canal, and make interventions on some of the challenges being experienced.

Mchunu said what they saw during the site visits represents a great deal of progress in terms of the work they are doing in Giyani of getting water to the residents.

“We are closing in on a trench between the Nsami dam and the river from which we are extracting water. On the way down to Giyani, there’s just a few connection points, I think about three, that have to be completed,” Mchunu said.

Mchunu also apologised to the community of Giyani for the delay in the completion of the project.

“This project should have been completed long ago [but] that didn’t happen. We have to apologise to the people of Giyani, and I have apologised, and I will apologise to the people we are going to. However, it does not mean that we have to apologise and sit, we have to apologise and accelerate our work.

“We recognise your anger, frustration and the disappointment on the missed deadline of 30 September 2022, and we take accountability. However, we remain committed to delivering water to this community as promised,” Mchunu said.

Kraaifontein community urged to safeguard infrastructure

Meanwhile, Water and Sanitation Deputy Minister, Dikeledi Magadzi, has urged the community of Kraaifontein to safeguard water infrastructure.

Magadzi made the call during a visit at Kraaifontein in Cape Town on Thursday, where she engaged with the community in an effort to curb vandalism of water and sanitation infrastructure.

Addressing the community at Bloekombos Primary School Hall, the Deputy Minister warned that dumping foreign objects like stones, tyres, and other solid waste, damages the infrastructure and costs the municipalities resources that would otherwise be utilised elsewhere.

“Vandalism of basic services has deprived communities of basic services, which is deeply concerning to the department. To further combat vandalism, government urges communities to report incidents of vandalism to police and other law enforcement agencies,” Magadzi said.

Earlier this year, the Department of Water and Sanitation and the City of Cape Town launched the anti-vandalism campaign to raise public awareness about the impact that the theft and vandalism of water and sanitation infrastructure has on essential services to communities.

The campaign also aims to highlight the valuable role that all stakeholders, including spheres of government and the public, must play to protect this critical infrastructure.

Wallacedene Pump Station Manager, Ntsikelelo Luthuli said vandalism of infrastructure causes losses in revenue, noting that the pump station of Wallacedene has to be fenced at a cost of R1.5 million.

“Due to the electric cable theft that happens from time to time, the temporary operation costs using generators at the pump station amount to R1 million per month,” Luthuli said.

Source: South African Government News Agency