Download PDFIn the big city of Johannesburg, it has been two days without water, at least in the Central Business District. People are struggling because water is a basic need.
Shop owner Derick said, “It is hard to work and service people at my shop. I am selling traditional medication and I am supposed to be clean all the time, and the shop needs to be clean as well. The muthi [medicine] that I sell must be washed and we often mix it with water, so this affects my business and we have been working for 5 years under these conditions. [The municipality] doesn’t inform us when the water will be taken, and we never know when the water comes back either. There is no communication.”
He said that what makes this even worse is that the electricity also goes out every day, and while customers do still buy the muthi, it is hard for the 48-year-old man to cope at times. Derick stays in Germiston and only comes to Johannesburg CBD for work.
He said, “I would be happy if the government can service us and think about hospitals because water is a need, and poor people cannot afford to buy drinking water.”
This article was submitted on 01 July 2023. 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.
