Note to Editors: Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Cllr René Steyn and Sesotho soundbite by Jafta Mokoena MPL. See attached pictures here, here, here, and here.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will formally petition the Free State Department of Education to urgently intervene and will intensify oversight over Matjhabeng Local Municipality to address the ongoing sewer crisis at Goudveld High School Hostel.
This action follows an oversight inspection I carried out on 26 March 2026 with MPL Jafta Mokoena. We confirmed that the municipality’s ongoing failure is exposing learners and staff to severe health risks and unsafe conditions.
The inspection follows multiple urgent letters from both the school and the Lejweleputswa Municipal Health Services, warning of a worsening sewer crisis that has now reached catastrophic levels. What was uncovered on site confirms a complete collapse of municipal sewer infrastructure and a shocking failure by the ANC-governed Matjhabeng Local Municipality to respond to repeated calls for intervention.
The sewer overflow affecting the hostel is not caused by the school but by a failure in the municipal sewer line along Long Road, which continues to back up into the school’s system. During the oversight visit, multiple manholes on the hostel premises were overflowing, with raw sewage flowing across the property. Lejweleputswa Municipal Health Services has confirmed that at least nine manholes are affected, creating a severe and immediate health risk to learners and staff.
Learners must live and eat in unacceptable conditions. Raw sewage is on the premises. A persistent stench fills the hostel. Basic sanitation standards have collapsed. Structural damage is now appearing. Soil erosion and subsidence from sewage seepage threaten the hostel buildings.
Photographic evidence from the site shows sinkholes forming alongside the building, standing sewage, and widespread ground saturation. This is not a developing issue; it is a full-blown infrastructure collapse. The DA further notes with grave concern that this crisis is not isolated, as parts of Jan Cilliers Park are also experiencing blocked drains, sewage backflow, and pooling wastewater.
This situation constitutes a direct violation of constitutional obligations, including the right to a safe and healthy environment. Despite the school’s formal request for urgent intervention submitted on 11 March 2026, the municipality has failed to respond or take meaningful action.
The DA is clear: a public school cannot and must not be expected to manage or fund the consequences of failed municipal infrastructure. Should this situation persist, the school may be forced to close the hostel to protect its learners.
Residents of Matjhabeng deserve better. The learners of Goudveld High School deserve better.
The continued collapse of basic services under ANC governance is no longer just a service delivery issue; it is a direct threat to public health and safety.