Government laying charges against government is a start but not enough

6 May 2024 

The news that the Department of Water and Sanitation has opened 36 criminal cases against 26 municipalities across the country for sewage spills that contravene environmental legislation is welcome news but does not go nearly far enough.

The municipalities in question are located in the Free State, Gauteng, Limpopo, North West, Mpumalanga. Limpopo and the North West represent some of the worst offenders for long-term sewage infrastructure failures that have caused the contamination of river and ground water systems.

The absence of municipalities in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal is difficult to comprehend.

The laying of these charges amounts to little more than national government covering its considerable rear end. Charges have been laid before and the few that make it to prosecution have resulted in charges being pleaded down to considerable fines. So, one tier of government fines another tier of government and the residents of these sewage flooded communities forego municipal budget allocations that could address these issues.

The fight against failing municipalities cannot be fought with kid-gloves. Where municipalities fail to adhere to sewage infrastructure turnaround plans, they must be placed under administration and competent administrators must be installed to ensure these plans are implemented.

ActionSA contends that the buddy-buddy relationship between tiers of government led by the ANC has been a major part of this problem. The relationship between tiers of government, as envisioned in the Constitution, was intended to provide accountability when the constitutional rights of South Africans are being infringed upon.

South Africans have a constitutionally protected right to safe water for household consumption, their right to health, for their rights to economic development through agriculture and tourism and for their rights to enjoy their environment.

ActionSA will place at the core of its agenda in provincial governments after these elections, the non-negotiable requirement that failing municipalities be placed under the tough kind of administration that gets the job done for the long-suffering residents of these municipalities.

Issued by Michael Beaumont, ActionSA Team FixSA Member for Infrastructure, 6 May 2024