The Democratic Alliance (DA) is calling on the Green Scorpions to urgently help address unbearable sewerage spills in Kakamas, as growing dysfunctionality within Kai !Garib presents little hope of the municipality remedying the situation itself.
A spilling drain in Binnekant Street, which is a main access road to the suburb of Langverwag, has been actively gushing for more than two weeks. To date there has been no response from Kai !Garib municipality, despite it being reported to the call centre numerous times. Pedestrians, including children, have to cross over the sewage river that has formed, on their way to school. The situation is unhygienic and has made life unbearable for those living in the vicinity, who have to endure the putrid stench.
The spilling drain is an immense service delivery failure. It is, however, a small part of the bigger sewerage crisis that has engulfed Kai !Garib.
The sewerage dam at the Kakamas waste water plant burst its walls some time ago, causing it to extend deep into the surrounding veld. This was enabled by almost a decade of no management of the sewage inflow, and zero maintenance of the dam, in which trees are growing, causing it to exceed full capacity. Despite its dysfunctionality, sewerage trucks continue to dispose of raw waste into what is left of the dam. The dam is also not fenced and, due to years of decay, barely resembles a waste water plant at all.
While the dismal state of Kai !Garib municipality, and its sewerage crisis, was recently highlighted by the South African Human Rights Commission during its provincial inquiry into the state of municipalities, the people of Kakamas cannot afford to wait until February next year for it to release its report and its recommendations.
The DA has submitted a formal complaint to the MEC of Environmental Affairs, Mase Manopole, and the Green Scorpions, for urgent action in response to the worsening sewerage crisis.
Residents deserve an immediate intervention to help restore sanitation services and facilitate the remediation of a safe and healthy environment.