The Democratic Alliance in Limpopo supports the immediate declaration of a State of Disaster and stands in solidarity with affected communities across the province, particularly in the Mopani and Vhembe Districts, following more than a week of torrential rainfall, with further heavy rain expected. Rainfall levels have already exceeded year 2000 levels in certain areas.
Communities in these two districts in north-eastern Limpopo have endured widespread flooding and displacement, the destruction of bridges and roads – including critical transport and supply-chain routes, the collapse of municipal infrastructure, and severe disruption of essential services such as water and electricity. Significant damage to homes and government infrastructure has been reported, alongside the loss of livestock and crops. This is apart from humanitarian matters.
This ongoing weather disaster has created immediate humanitarian and economic crises and requires a swift, coordinated response. Without urgent emergency repairs to critical infrastructure, including water, electricity, transport, and supply-chain routes, the humanitarian and economic consequences—particularly for the farming sector—will be significantly worsened.
While we support the declaration of a State of Disaster, we call for the establishment of an inter-governmental task team to be put in place so that informed decisions can be taken for the reprioritisation of funds. We will closely monitor how fiscal resources are spent to ensure that Limpopo does not experience the levels of corruption seen during COVID-19 and previous disaster responses. We will demand a clean, effective, and efficient recovery.
Once the situation has stabilised, and in light of reports and complaints from affected towns and districts, we will call for an independent enquiry to assess whether provincial and local government had adequate prevention and mitigation measures in place; whether they were sufficiently prepared to provide a coordinated and rapid response; and whether they had the capacity to deliver immediate relief and effect a resilient, longer-term recovery.
We commend all those responding to this unfolding disaster, including the South African Police Service in Limpopo, supported by their national counterparts, and the SANDF Air Force for conducting life-saving rescue operations under extremely dangerous conditions. We further commend organised agriculture, farm watch structures, and commercial farmers for their critical role in rural disaster response, including assisting with road repairs to restore access to isolated communities.
This crisis is far from over. According to the South African Weather Service, the Mopani District – including Phalaborwa, Hoedspruit, Tzaneen, Letaba, and Giyani – remains under a Red Level 10 warning today, 16 January, due to saturated catchments and a continued high risk of flooding. Weather conditions are expected to improve only gradually from around 19 January.
Decades of poor maintenance of municipal infrastructure have significantly worsened the impact of this disaster and will increase the scale of recovery required. Our immediate focus must remain on protecting life and property and providing humanitarian assistance.
Once floodwaters recede, attention must turn to assessing the full extent of damage and losses, restoring essential services, and rebuilding infrastructure using a “build back better” approach to reduce future risk. Early reports already indicate that the damage is extensive.
The Democratic Alliance will exercise firm oversight over the disaster response and recovery to ensure transparency, accountability, and consequence management. Years of neglect have left communities exposed, and this cannot be allowed to continue.