The Democratic Alliance (DA) in South Africa has unveiled a billboard campaign aimed at the city's leadership in eThekwini, criticizing their handling of the municipality's water crisis. The billboard, launched by DA eThekwini mayoral candidate Haniff Hoosen, reads: "You can stop the water tanker mafia. Vote DA for water in your taps." This campaign is part of the DA's strategy to highlight the city's water infrastructure problems.
According to Hoosen, the billboard aims to emphasize the municipality's failure to address the persistent water infrastructure problems in eThekwini. The mayor, city manager, and head of water and sanitation are featured on the billboard, as the DA believes the water crisis has worsened under their leadership. The DA has accused the municipality of not implementing its own water turnaround plan.
eThekwini has become increasingly dependent on water tankers due to prolonged water interruptions, with about 13 000 active water leaks at any given time. The city loses an estimated 21 billion litres of water a month, approximately 700 million litres a day. Hoosen stated that clean drinking water is being wasted while families wait for tankers.
The DA has proposed a Water Recovery Plan focused on repairing leaks, upgrading ageing infrastructure, protecting municipal water revenue, and rebuilding technical capacity. This plan aims to reduce the city's dependence on emergency tankers. Hoosen emphasized that sustained investment and greater accountability are necessary to address the water crisis.
The continued reliance on emergency tankers has turned what was meant to be a temporary intervention into a permanent feature of water provision in parts of the city. This has created an environment where tanker interests benefit while residents suffer. The DA believes that the leadership failure has allowed this situation to occur.
Hoosen urged residents to use their voting power to bring about change, stating that "the people of eThekwini do not have to accept dry taps, leaking pipes and endless tanker queues." He encouraged residents to vote for the DA on November 4 to stop the water tanker mafia and get water back into Durban's taps.
The DA's campaign is part of a broader effort to hold the municipality accountable for its handling of the water crisis. By highlighting the issue and proposing a solution, the DA aims to provide an alternative to the current leadership and its approach to addressing the water infrastructure problems in eThekwini.
Key points
- The DA has launched a billboard campaign targeting eThekwini's leadership over the city's worsening water crisis.
- The municipality has failed to implement its own water turnaround plan, leading to increased dependence on water tankers.
- The DA has proposed a Water Recovery Plan to address the water crisis, focusing on repairing leaks and upgrading infrastructure.
