Note to editors: Please find attached the English soundbite by Cllr Chris Dalton and Sesotho by Karabo Khakhau MP.
On 24 July, the Democratic Alliance (DA) in Moqhaka Local Municipality conducted an oversight visit to assess the progress of the work at the Kroonstad sewerage plant. While there have been significant cosmetic improvements on both sides of the plant and work appears to be progressing well, a closer inspection reveals severe underlying issues with the new plant, which was repaired less than two years ago.
The amount of sewage entering the plant is negligible, unsurprisingly, as many of the manholes along the pipelines leading to the plant are open and spewing out sewage. Even around the plant’s perimeters, manholes are open, allowing sewage to flow at an alarming rate into the river.
Inside the plant, one screw conveyor feeds some sewage into the system, after which it flows freely through the plant. Two aerators are operational but seem to serve merely as a facade to show activity, as the ponds contain water, but the large boom paddles remain motionless. For the first time, chlorine was being added to the water before the untreated grey sewage ran into the river.
Millions of Rands have been spent, yet years after the emergency repairs began, millions of litres of sewage continue to be pumped into the Vals River. There is a stark lack of consequence management in both the Province and the Municipality. Reports from the Auditor-General have highlighted Moqhaka’s ineffective leadership, calling for accountability, but the ANC has failed to hold its deployed leadership accountable.
The DA will persist in conducting inspections and will demand accountability and service delivery from all parties, matching the standard we uphold in areas we govern. We will also raise questions in the council regarding the measures being taken to address the sewage crisis. Immediate action is required to prevent further environmental damage and to ensure the health and safety of our community.