Note to Editors: Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Cllr Suzette Steyn and Sesotho soundbite by Cllr Kabelo Moreeng. See attached pictures here and here.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will intensify oversight of Mafube Local Municipality’s Technical Department and demand urgent action to ensure clean, reliable water for all residents in Frankfort, Namahadi, Cornelia, and Ntswanasatsi.
The ongoing failure to address water supply, quality, and operational planning frustrates residents and hampers projects.
To address this, the DA will:
- Liaise with the Department of Water and Sanitation on water quality testing.
- Demand that Mafube Municipality expedite all outstanding contractor payments.
- Strengthen oversight to hold the municipality accountable for safe, clean drinking water.
At Frankfort’s water treatment plant, three of six sand filters are non-operational, with maintenance stalled due to the lack of a proper operational plan.Only one filter has been cleaned, while contractors need strict water supply management to complete repairs. Without this, the sand filter replacements and new pipeline, currently only 22% complete, will miss the October 2025 deadline. Frequent pipe bursts and poor technical support worsen delays.
Residents and contractors alike are frustrated as operational plans are ignored, and contractors have remained unpaid since March 2025. The intake tower upgrade was also abandoned due to non-payment.
Meanwhile, six boreholes to offset the Lesotho Highlands closure are finally equipped. They will be handed over on 29 August 2025 in Tweeling, where residents still face near-daily water shortages due to pressure issues under DA investigation.
For two months, Mafube residents have endured unreliable supply: no water, bursts, chemical shortages, wrong dosages, tripping pumps, sludge blockages, and no tanker back-up.