Download PDFIt has been a month since the small town of Bathurst in Ndlambe Municipality, Eastern Cape, has had water shut off in certain parts. Some parts of the town have been receiving water on elect days but others have only experienced an unexpected and complete watershedding.
There has not been enough rain for the past three to four weeks, worsening the situation for the households who are completely without water. The community is suffering and frustrated because the local government is not saying anything regarding what seems to be a water crisis without an end. Some streets are provided with government water tanks but this does not help many others because they have to travel long distances to have a chance to get the water if they arrive before it has been fully drawn by nearby households. Even if they find the water, they have to travel back with heavy water-buckets.
Thembinkosi Gaga commented about the situation they are facing saying, “what is more upsetting is not knowing what exactly is happening and why can’t the water be supplied anymore in the community. We were not warned that there would be no water in the community, and there are houses that don’t own water tanks like mine that fully rely on the [water from the] taps, they are dry and have been dry for a month,” Gaga concluded that the community will be taken for granted by the municipality if they remain silent through this crisis, and would intervene only if someone dies from thirst.
Noncedo Peyi (54) says it hard for her as she is getting old. She has to travel long distances to get water for her family’s laundry or household uses. “I don’t understand why exactly can’t the municipality offer every street water tanks so everyone will be accommodated because this is wrong. We are old and sick; we cannot go all the way to get water,” observed The resident. She that water is important for human use and it is wrong for the government to have the community suffering like this when they have to get water. She hopes that the municipality meets the community halfway.
Another community member who is feeling the crisis explained how the water crisis affects her and her family. She is Nwabisa Gula, a mother of three. “I wake up every morning to prepare for the kids for school, while I also have to prepare for work at 6:00 am. We wake up very early to go to the street tanks to get water, and before we go to bed every evening. It’s tiring me and the kids. I fear they will be affected at school by this,” said Gula. She highlighted the risks if the community continues to live without water, saying there would be more problems including health-related issueswithin the community.
Bathurst has been affected by many problems since 1994. The community has faced issues such as high levels of unemployment, dirty piped water, a high crime rate while illiteracy rate is very high. The water crisis is one issue that is affecting the entire community, especially an area called Ngqesho as it has been dry and there are less than 10 water tanks in the entire area. People must travel long distances to get water to drink. The issue affects everyone in the community. Many are scared that the issue will take too long to be sorted out by the municipality.
This article was submitted on 13 March 2025. You may republish this article, so long as you credit the authors and Karibu! Online (www.Karibu.org.za), and do not change the text. Please include a link back to the original article.
