Rand Water case: Water cuts may be a thing of the past after AfriForum intervened
26 March 2024
The implementation of water cuts as a debt collection mechanism for outstanding debts, such as that which Rand Water recently applied in several municipalities in Gauteng, Free State and Mpumalanga, may possibly be a thing of the past. The High Court in Pretoria ruled today (26 March) that an interdict for the restoration of water supply to six municipalities in these provinces is unnecessary as Rand Water has already stopped water cuts here. Nevertheless, the court found today that Rand Water’s water cuts were illegal at face value and determined that AfriForum must approach the court again on an urgent basis for an interdict if it becomes aware of any similar water cuts by Rand Water.
The judgment follows after AfriForum served court documents on Rand Water earlier this month to restore full water pressure. AfriForum brought an urgent application asking for an interdict, which had to compel Rand Water to restore full water supply to the municipalities concerned. AfriForum was forced to bring an application after Rand Water issued a notice stating that it wants to reduce water pressure due to outstanding debt to the following municipalities: Emfuleni Local Municipality, Govan Mbeki Local Municipality, Lesedi Local Municipality, Rand West Local Municipality, Ngwathe Local Municipality and Merafong City Local Municipality. Water cuts had already been applied to the two latter municipalities.
After AfriForum issued the urgent court application, Rand Water made a U-turn and declared that it had started to restore the water supply. Rand Water admitted that it had not complied with statutory requirements and that it would comply in the future.
“We are grateful that the water cuts have been stopped because of AfriForum’s sustained pressure. The judgement will enable us to, by means of supplementary documents, approach the court in a very short time for an order to stop this malpractice as a debt collection mechanism,” says Petrus Coetzee, Advisor for Local Government Affairs at AfriForum.
“AfriForum tried to resolve the situation in such a way that the community’s rights would be protected, but Rand Water insisted that they will continue to apply debt collection measures. We also took note of the astronomical amounts owed by these municipalities to Rand Water but were however left with no choice but to approach the court for the necessary order as our communities did not have the necessary access to clean water. The solution to the mismanagement of the country’s municipalities certainly does not lie in the intrusion on people’s Constitutional rights,” says Coetzee.
According to Coetzee, the solution to the water problem lies rather in the privatisation of service delivery and the private management of the funds. “Most municipalities prove time and time again that they are incapable of applying transparent and efficient financial management. We would also like to see closer cooperation between water suppliers, government authorities and civil society organisations.”
AfriForum calls on communities to notify the organisation of any water cuts implemented by Rand Water for debt collection purposes. Community members can send evidence to [email protected].
Issued by Petrus Coetzee, Advisor: Local Government Affairs, AfriForum, 26 March 2024
