The FF Plus asked Mpumalanga's MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Mr Mandla Msibi, what contingency plan his Department has to ensure water supply during load shedding.
As a result of load shedding, nearly every municipality in Mpumalanga has no water because the pumps that supply water to residential areas cannot function without electricity.
Many municipalities do not even have generators at reservoirs.
When there is electricity, the water supplied to suburbs is dirty and polluted.
Clean, potable water is a fundamental right and supplying it is municipalities' responsibility.
The FF Plus is of the opinion that water pumps must be exempted from load shedding. If that does not happen quickly, it is crucial that municipalities have contingency plans, like generators and solar panels, in place.
Water supply must be guaranteed at all times.
If water cannot be pumped to suburbs, there is no doubt that wastewater, like sewage, cannot be pumped away from suburbs either.
The Department must, therefore, also say how it will prevent such a disaster and how water treatment plants are being managed during load shedding.
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