Municipal water scandal unveiled

A R140m water scandal has left thousands of rural KZN households dry and three top council officials in court on charges of fraud and corruption, says a Sunday Tribune report. The uThukela Municipality paid R29m a year over five years to a host of companies, many owned by council employees, to provide water to 714 910 people. A damning forensic report drawn up for the provincial Department of Co-operative Governance has been made public. The report, which landed two top officials in court this month, details how unscrupulous water tanker contractors pocketed more than R140m in the past five years while at least 10 000 people who were supposed to receive water, never saw a drop. At the centre of the saga are a group of uThukela District Municipality employees who flouted the law by either awarding tenders to non-tax-compliant companies or running their own businesses contracting to the municipality to deliver water. One of the people named in the report is the high-flying former head of water service, and former mayor, of the same municipality, Stanley Dladla. Dladla and head of disaster management Zwangawe Phileus Sithole were arrested by the Hawks last August on charges of fraud and contravening the Prevention of Corruption Act. They are out on R10 000 bail each, notes the report. Full Sunday Tribune report (subscription needed)

Muncipalities also have to deal with water loss problems. Free State municipalities are losing more than 8bn litres of water a month, according to figures tabled by Water Affairs Minister Edna Molewa. A report on the Fin24.com site notes that worst affected is Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality - which includes the provincial capital, Bloemfontein - where exactly half the water supplied is lost. In a written reply to a parliamentary question, plus attached annexures, Molewa said the average total water loss in the Free State's 20 municipalities was 8 650 619 kilolitres a month. The biggest loss was in Mangaung: 3 315 059 kilolitres a month. The reply does not specify how much of this loss is the result of leaking pipes, but a second annexure reveals that millions of rands have been set aside in the province for 'water leak repairs' in the 20 municipalities. Molewa said her department had taken steps to help the municipalities reduce their water losses. These include repairing leaks, installing meters, repairing leaking reservoirs and replacing ageing pipes, the report states. Full report on the Fin24.com site

Government has responded by setting up a task team. The Departments of Water Affairs and Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs will set up a group that will work towards improving water delivery at municipal level. A report on the SA News site states that the team has been formed to work on an appropriate funding model for the water sector. 'This will involve alignment of grants, a review of the Municipal Infrastructure Grant policy and improved monitoring and evaluation of infrastructure programmes. Such a model will look at the whole value chain, including debts owed by municipalities to water boards; and pay specific attention to infrastructure requirements,' Cabinet spokesperson Jimmy Manyi said. Full report on the SA News site

Government has also just made a National Water Resources Strategy available for public comment. It is pinning hope on its ability to plug leaking pipes, reduce pollution and 'stretch' resources to stave off the looming fresh water crisis. A report on the News24 site quotes Water Affairs acting deputy DG for regulation, Helgard Muller, who said: 'We don't want development to be held back by a lack of water, or lack of access to water.' Speaking at a media briefing following the gazetting of the draft second National Water Resources Strategy (NWRS), he said this was one of the key aims behind the plan, which was open for public comment over the next 90 days. The new NWRS was recently approved by Cabinet. It lays out a strategy for water resources management over the next 20 years, with a particular focus on the period 2013-17. Water Affairs Minister Edna Molewa earlier said a new study showed the funding needed over the next 10 years for new water infrastructure was now R670bn, up from the estimate of R573bn she gave earlier this year. The Minister said stopping water losses - including unaccounted for water and that lost through leaking pipes - was a priority for her department. The NWRS notes that while SA has world-class water-management legislation, implementation of this 'has been slow'. Full report on the News24 site