The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Lephalale Local Municipality shares the Sekelbos community’s grave concern and utter frustration over the continual sewage overflows at the Sekelbos Pump Station, and will insist that the municipality provide a clear and factual explanation for the repeated failures, immediately implement a permanent repair or replacement of the failing pumps, and communicate transparently with residents by setting out realistic timelines for corrective action.
Sewage overflows at the pump station have now persisted for more than two weeks and pose a serious risk to public health, safety, and the environment—conditions no community should be forced to endure. This situation constitutes a direct infringement on residents’ constitutional rights to dignity and to a safe and healthy environment.
Despite repeated attempts by the municipal sanitation team to address the problem, the pump station continues to fail. Each temporary intervention has proven ineffective, resulting in recurring overflows that spill raw sewage into surrounding residential areas.
This ongoing crisis points to chronic infrastructure neglect, poor maintenance, and a failure by the municipality to implement sustainable solutions. Raw sewage flowing through residential areas is not a minor inconvenience—it is a public health emergency, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks, contaminating soil and water sources, and causing long-term environmental harm, while further eroding residents’ dignity.
Residents have shown patience while waiting for a lasting solution, but that patience is understandably exhausted. The municipality cannot continue to rely on short-term, reactive fixes that fail to address the root cause of the problem. Sekelbos residents deserve a sanitation system that functions reliably and safely.
This ANC-led municipality must accept full accountability for its gross failures and for exposing the community to disgusting, unsafe, and unhealthy living conditions. Access to basic sanitation is a constitutional right, not a privilege. The people of Sekelbos should not be forced to live with overflowing sewage as a result of municipal failure and poor planning.
The DA has also lodged a formal complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission and will continue to monitor the situation closely, pursuing all available oversight mechanisms until a permanent and effective solution is implemented.
As local government elections approach, the people of Lephalale will have the opportunity to put an end to governance failures and collapsing service delivery. The Democratic Alliance stands ready to provide responsive, responsible, and caring local government that puts residents first.