Durban — In an effort to mitigate water challenges, the struggling uThukela District Municipality in the north-west of KwaZulu-Natal has built a R173 million water project under the auspices of the Okhahlamba Local Municipality.
On Thursday, district mayor Inkosi Ntandoyesizwe Shabalala, accompanied by IFP member of parliament, Siphosethu Ngcobo, officially opened the scheme much to the relief of the residents who had been complaining about sharing water with animals.
Delivering his address, Shabalala told the communities that their water problem would be a thing of the past. Inkosi apologised to the residents for the slow delivery of clean water, saying some of the challenges were a result of the problems inherited from the previous administration. He added that when he and the IFP took over the reins it found R800 million debt which had to be paid.
“It’s not because we are failing to deliver basic services like water to our communities as the new administration. Those who are criticising us don’t know that we inherited; R800 million debt. This meant we could not allocate all our budget service delivery because we needed to pay this debt which happened before we came in 2021.
“However, I am glad to report to our committees that we halved the debt and we are left with R400 million,” said the mayor.
He said although the overall cost of the project would be R1.5 billion, by Thursday only phase one had been completed which has been opened for public use. It cost R173 million.
He said phase one saw a lot of boreholes being built which resulted in 76 water standpipes that are ready for use by wards 2, 3 and 14. The boreholes would be supported by 13 elevated water tanks with a capacity of 5 000 litres each.
The mayor said apart from benefiting from water, the project also provided jobs to 32 people through the Expanded Public Works Programme.
“This project highlights the municipality’s commitment to improving infrastructure and providing essential services to its residents. It also reflects the success of collaborative efforts within the community,” the mayor added.
Completed projects thus far amount to R77 million in total. Two projects each cost R21.1m and another project cost R35m which comes to a sum of R77m. This project is amongst other projects that have been handed over and completed.
UThukela District Municipality was one district identified by Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC, Thulasizwe Buthelezi, as dysfunctional, alongside Endumeni and Mtubatuba local municipalities in the province, during his budget speech on Tuesday.
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