House Chairperson,
With Joburg Water warning of major water outages next week affecting five regions, the ACDP greatly welcomes this debate and hopes it may result in effective action being taken on the grave crisis of water infrastructure in Johannesburg and other municipalities. The right to water is enshrined in the Constitution yet millions of residents are denied this right. The Vaal Dam which the main water Joburg supply, is estimated to be full, yet it is not functioning optimally because of failing pipes, leaking reservoirs, apparent theft of funds and a lack of political accountability.
Before addressing Johannesburg’s water crisis at its root, the ACDP urges ring‑fenced funding for urgent repairs and upgrades, audited independently and a stop to new developments where there is no infrastructure to sustain them. The Department has estimated that repairing and upgrading the nation’s beleaguered infrastructure will cost an astounding R90 billion annually when its budget for the current financial year is not even R2billion. Dr Ferial Adams, a water specialist and Executive Director of Water CAN (a citizen’s water monitoring and activism agency,) says Joburg Water’s does not control its own budget and the Mayor appears uninterested in hearing solutions.
The ACDP exhorts the Minister to act decisively by directing municipalities to establish statutory Water Infrastructure Planning and Implementation Departments that are staffed by engineers and financial controllers appointed transparently and bound by professional codes.
Secondly, the Municipal Finance Management Act, Act 56 of 2003 should be amended to criminalise diversion of infrastructure funds, with mandatory reporting to the Hawks and SIU.
Thirdly, municipalities should adopt tamper‑proof digital ledgers for expenditure, such as blockchain systems, to prevent diversion of funds and enable real‑time auditing.
Fourthly, provincial transfers must be performance‑linked, tied to measurable outcomes like kilometres of pipe replaced and reservoirs repaired.
Chairperson, the ACDP insists that Parliament must act decisively to restore the integrity of our people, protect residents, and ensure that Johannesburg’s water crisis does not become a national catastrophe. We know that the Lesotho Highlands Water Project completion is not expected before the early 2030s, meaning Johannesburg’s water crisis will not be alleviated in the short term. We want to see transparent reporting to Parliament and communities on water infrastructure projects and accountability mechanisms for municipal officials who fail to deliver, including sanctions under the Municipal Finance Management Act, Act 56 of 2003.
I thank you.
