The Democratic Alliance (DA)’s Constituency Head for Bo-Karoo, Fawzia Rhoda, will engage with relevant Members of the Executive Council (MEC) to demand clarity on project timelines linked to the millions of rands committed to water and sanitation upgrades in Emthanjeni over the next Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and through the adjustment appropriation bill, to ensure that these commitments translate into tangible improvements on the ground.
This after the DA exposed Emthanjeni Municipality’s continued indifference and failure to act decisively in response to the ongoing water crisis, as it persists in ignoring repeated calls to urgently scale up and stabilise water provision in De Aar and Hanover.
The two-year-old water crisis reached boiling point in December. Severe and worsening water shortages have left households in De Aar West, Solheim, Rantsig, Louisevale, Waterdal, De Aar East, Nonzwakazi, and the entire town of Hanover without access to a reliable supply of safe, potable water, if any water at all. Critical care facilities such as the Giggs Children’s Safe House and Sonder Sorge Old Age Home in De Aar have been particularly hard hit.
This situation has been allowed to deteriorate further despite sustained intervention efforts by the DA, including formal complaints, practical proposals, written reports, and repeated urgent calls for action submitted to municipal leadership.
Even recommendations issued by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), following its damning inquiry into the state of Emthanjeni Municipality at the end of last year, have failed to yield any meaningful or sustained improvement in water provision.
Our most recent appeals, made throughout December and January directly to the Municipal Manager, Mr Disang Molaole, called for the immediate deployment of additional water tankers to all affected areas, particularly to households and care facilities. We further requested a published, transparent, and enforceable water delivery schedule. These appeals were ignored.
The municipality’s continued failure to ensure a reliable water supply constitutes a serious breach of its constitutional and legislative obligations to provide basic water services. It also demonstrates a clear lack of urgency, accountability, and administrative capacity to resolve this deepening crisis.
The DA will continue to fight to restore water to every household in De Aar and Hanover and to hold municipal management and officials fully accountable for the violation of residents’ most basic rights.
The people of De Aar and Hanover deserve answers, accountability, dignity — and most importantly, water.