One communal tap does not end Majamisa Village’s water crisis, but it brings relief
Statement by Remington Mazibuko, Councillor in the Inkosi Mtubatuba Local Municipality and UDM KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Chairperson
The United Democratic Movement (UDM) in Mtubatuba welcomes the restoration of access to water at a communal tap in Majamisa Village, within the Inkosi Mtubatuba Local Municipality, after residents had complained for a prolonged period without receiving assistance. When the community approached me, I joined residents in taking up the matter and remained involved until water access was restored.
The immediate relief experienced by residents is understandable. However, access to one communal tap must not be presented as though the water crisis in Majamisa Village has been resolved.
Residents should not have to carry containers, queue at a communal collection point or organise their daily lives around an uncertain water supply. A communal tap may provide temporary relief, but it is not a substitute for reliable running water and proper household infrastructure.
The fact that residents are grateful simply to have water flowing from one tap shows how badly they have been failed. Access to water is a constitutional right, not a favour that communities must repeatedly plead for.
The uMkhanyakude District Municipality is the water services authority responsible for water and sanitation services within the Inkosi Mtubatuba municipal area. The water crisis in uMkhanyakude predates the current municipal term. Following the local government elections in November 2021, the national Department of Water and Sanitation invoked section 63 of the Water Services Act in February 2022 and appointed a water board to support the management, operation and maintenance of the District Municipality’s water and sanitation infrastructure.
The intervention has since included the refurbishment and upgrading of water schemes across the district. Government has indicated that 22 projects, valued at approximately R1.3 billion, are being implemented and that the programme is expected to continue until September 2027.
Despite this substantial and prolonged intervention, residents of Majamisa Village still do not have reliable running water in their homes. This raises serious questions about what has been achieved, which projects have reached communities in Inkosi Mtubatuba and why residents remain dependent on temporary communal water points.
Furthermore, the people of Majamisa Village must not become casualties of political rivalry or administrative buck passing between the African National Congress (ANC) led uMkhanyakude District Municipality and the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) led Inkosi Mtubatuba Local Municipality. The District Municipality bears responsibility for water services, while the Local Municipality is the government closest to residents and has a duty to ensure that the needs of communities are not ignored. Political differences cannot be allowed to delay cooperation or leave residents trapped between two municipalities blaming one another.
Water has no party colour. The people of Majamisa Village are entitled to functioning infrastructure and dependable services regardless of which political party governs the District Municipality, the Local Municipality or any particular ward. The restoration of the communal tap must therefore be treated as an emergency measure while a permanent solution is implemented.
The UDM in Mtubatuba calls on the uMkhanyakude District Municipality to explain how long Majamisa Village has been without reliable running water, why residents do not have adequate household connections and whether the current communal water point is intended only as a temporary intervention.
The District Municipality must also disclose whether Majamisa Village forms part of any current water infrastructure project and provide the community with the relevant budget, implementation plan and timeframe for establishing a reliable and sustainable supply. The Inkosi Mtubatuba Local Municipality must ensure that the plight of Majamisa Village remains before council and that residents receive regular and truthful information about progress.
