The residents of Hammanskraal have cried foul that they were being requested to make direct payments to drivers of trucks supplying them with clean drinkable water.
Their concern comes as the water crisis in Hammanskraal continues despite claims by the City of Tshwane that residents are beginning to receive clean running water in their yards.
Residents of Hammanskraal have been without potable water for about 20 years, according to the Human Rights Commission. Hammanskraal also became the epicentre of a cholera outbreak in May 2023. There were 23 reported deaths and 99 confirmed cases.
The residents’ concerns were confirmed by Crezane Bosch, MPL and DA shadow MEC for community safety.
Charging money for free water
Bosch revealed that some of the residents have shared that they are required to pay money in exchange for water from municipal water trucks.
“These residents told me and showed me messages and voice notes that they played to me, where they are forced to pay for water. Pay for water from the water tankers which are contracted by the City of Tshwane. Now this is using taxpayers’ money to pay for water and services that should be granted to them [for free] in this area.
“This is exploitative, it is abusive, and it is a corrupt tendency. This is something, and this is something that needs to stop… Now these members have had to pay R250 to the water tankers just to get some water to their houses. And this is an absolutely corrupt manner.
“We demand and call on the city to provide proper communication and give communication as to what is going on. Because this looks like a mafia state, because that is what it is,” said Bosch.
She was speaking during the water strike at RDP Refentse and Stinkwater on Friday. These are some of the communities that have been affected by a pipe burst and have had no water for three weeks.
Mayor updates parliament
Mayor Nasiphi Moya told Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) on Friday that they have received calls from residents saying clean-looking water is coming from their taps. But they were warned not to drink it.
Anger is also boiling over municipal water tankers that were meant to provide emergency relief. Instead of free delivery, locals allege that drivers are now selling water for between R200 and R250 per JoJo tank.
For many struggling families, this has made free emergency access to clean water impossible.
During a visit this week, Sunday World saw how Hammanskraal families have been forced to adapt to a life without reliable water. Almost every yard now has a JoJo tank. The tanks are standing tall, painted green, a silent reminder of the daily struggle.
Residents now rely on JoJo tanks
These tanks, once seen as a backup for emergencies, have become a staple for households. They help to store enough water to survive in the generally poverty-stricken township. However, to fill up the JoJo tanks, the driver of the municipality water tank truck demands payment from the residents.
The mood across the community is one of exhaustion, quiet anger and fear. Most of the residents approached by Sunday World either preferred to remain anonymous or declined to comment.
A resident who spoke on condition of anonymity, for fear of political victimisation, said she was tired of the Tshwane municipality making empty promises while their lives are reduced to waiting for the next tanker that may never arrive.
She expressed frustration that the municipality is not regularly visiting the community to follow up on these water issues and how they affect residents’ daily lives.
“I earn a pension and find it hard to walk. When no one is home by the time the water trucks come, then one would be forced to hire someone to go fetch the water. And the delivery fee costs R50. It feels like the water is not as free as it should be.
Pensioners hardest hit
“My toilet stinks because they haven’t been coming. And sometimes, there would be water coming out of the taps that we use for flushing the toilet. The water smells like sewage, I don’t understand how it gets to our taps,” she said.
She alleged that some community members, including herself, are compromised. This is because before the tankers distribute water to the community, they go to certain homes to sell the water.
However, she said they often survive by buying water from one of the yards with a borehole. There, 20 litres of water cost R5.
Thandi Lebese, another resident who owns a fast food shop, expressed frustration. She explained the difficulty of trying to keep up with hygiene while struggling for water.
Lebese has to provide a water dish for residents to wash their hands. She says they always have to wait for the tanker to come through and fill up their JoJo tanks.
“You see how quiet it is; you should see when water trucks come through. People come out from all sides with buckets. I survived because of this JoJo tank,” she said, pointing at the movable property.
Resident’s borehole only source
“The drivers [of trucks sent by municipalities] would come and fill it up for us. It is not free though; I get charged R250 each time,” said Lebese.
She said it had been six days since the truck last came and would probably come after two full weeks. If they struggle for water during the time, they buy it from a house where there is a borehole.
Moya was asked about the progress of the water project. She told the committee that an interim plan was underway. She added that progress had been made after President Cyril Ramaphosa visited the area after the cholera outbreak.
Moya said in April 2024, the then Minister of Water and Sanitation Senzo Mchunu launched the project. The project was divided into four phases across different areas.
According to the original schedule, the first module of the package plant was meant to be completed by the end of September 2024. This was to be followed by others in February, April, and June 2025. However, the first module was delayed.
Mayor breaks down challenges
She explained that Magalies Water is the implementing agent. This while the Department of Water and Sanitation holds the budget. And the City of Tshwane is only responsible for reticulation.
“The delays the first time were all technical. These included issues like the rock that they encountered. They were supposed to start with Module 1. And because they encountered a rock, they had to start with Module 4.
“While we were monitoring that, there was a fire in Ekurhuleni that delayed the electronical work that was done. It pushed that we launch the project in January instead of September. Then the schedule had to be revised from what was supposed to be February 2024. It was supposed to be April, and that April was further moved to June.
“I don’t want to render engineering opinions. But the responses that we get are either technical, or the scope of the project was big or anticipated. These are the responses that we have been getting from Magalies Water as we have been monitoring this project,” said Moya.
Minister stepped in
She said they had visited Hammanskraal alongside Minister of Water and Sanitation Pemmy Majodina. The visit was to announce that the commissioning of Module 2 is completed.
She said they had to indicate how long purification would take, and said it would take at least two to three weeks.
“Only to realise Magalies Water does not have the necessary volumes of water, because what was promised was delivery of 12.5 megalitres. When we were launching, the subsequent deadline was that on the 3rd of August we will go back to commission the third module. And the last module will be in September.
“Where we are, for the past few weeks, there is a lot of work that Magalies Water has been doing in Hammanskraal. The first one was to supply water through the Bosplaas line and obviously came with its own limitations. Because the capacity is not what the community of Hammanskraal were used to.
“We are only getting updates this morning, where the residents themselves are saying the water is clean. And we are saying, ‘Please don’t drink the water until we confirm’.”
