Hundreds of jobs are at risk and farming activities in the Ephraim Mogale and Elias Motsoaledi municipalities are facing collapse as a result of Sekhukhune District Municipality and Lepelle Northern Water (LNW) neglecting water infrastructure.
The DA has now referred this matter to the DA Shadow Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Cilliers Brink MP, for urgent submission on a national level to have the water crisis in the municipality addressed.
This follows a meeting with stakeholders in the town of Marble Hall last week, following reports of their consideration to relocate their factories and operations due to serious water challenges in the area.
Granor Passi, a major juice producer and buyer of citrus in the area, is very concerned about the future of their operation as a result of inconsistent water supply. The production manager at the plant indicated that water supply, which is critical to their operation, has been erratic with days where there was no water at all. This has resulted in severe backlogs and the rotting of fruit.
Loskop Valley is a major citrus and table grape farming community. With citrus and fruit already rotting in ports as a result of the restrictions due to the Russia-Ukraine war, the extra burden of being unable to divert some fruit to the juice factory is going to severely affect the entire community.
Other key stakeholders in the town, like McCain and Tiger Brands, who can and freeze fruit and vegetables from the area, are also being affected and in some operations retrenchments are already taking place. These job losses are a devastating result of poor infrastructure maintenance by the municipality and LNW.
These factories are major contributors to the sustainability of the municipality in terms of both its finances and employment. Should they be forced to consider moving to another area, the municipalities, which already face bankruptcy, will risk collapse.
The DA has raised the water infrastructure in both Ephraim Mogale and Elias Motsoaledi Municipalities with the Human Rights Commission on several occasions, and despite court orders against the District Municipality to deliver water, it is clear they do not have the political will nor the expertise to ensure that the situation is rectified.