[ad_1]
Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu delivered a fleet of tanker trucks to municipalities in the Eastern Cape on Friday. Photo: Malibongwe Dayimani
- Six months after the Department of Water and Sanitation banned the hiring of tanker trucks, the Eastern Cape government received a Fleet of 20 water cisterns, which will deliver water to areas with water shortages in the province. .
- Minister Lindiwe Sisulu said in east London on Friday that the province’s water transport system was open to too much corruption.
- The water entity, Amatola Water, accused unscrupulous service providers of engineering a water crisis by sabotaging the water infrastructure for profit.
The Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation, Lindiwe Sisulu, delivered 20 new tanker trucks worth 26 million rand to the municipalities of the Eastern Cape when the department announced that it had cut ties with “corrupt water transport service providers. “Profiting from a” designed “water crisis.
The tanker trucks were handed over to the mayors of different municipalities in the province, during an event held at the Nahoon Dam in East London on Friday afternoon.
Speaking to News24, the water and sanitation department body, Amatola Water CEO Portia Makhanya said that hiring service providers to transport water to communities was a costly exercise that hurt the government.
He said that the entity, which supports municipalities with water services, bought its own fleet to avoid speculation.
“During the hiring of trucks, vandalism in the water infrastructure was rife because suddenly there was a crisis, a man-made crisis that would force you to hire at inflated prices, but since water is life, you have no choice but to hire ”. Makhanya said.
He added that it cost Amatola Water more than R150,000 per month to hire a single truck and added that the entity was paying for 60 trucks to transport water throughout the province.
READ ALSO | 3 million South Africans without water, tanks are not enough – GET OUT
She revealed that Amatola Water spent R60 million on hiring trucks last year alone.
Makhanya said the new tanker trucks will bring water from municipal water treatment plants to communities at very low costs, serving all municipalities in the Eastern Cape except two meters: Buffalo City Metro and Nelson Mandela Bay.
He added that the tanks were purchased with funds from the National Treasury.
Sisulu said that she, along with the Cooperative Governance Minister, have banned water trucks because they are so open to corruption. “It is already forbidden. When we met with the local government MECs, they themselves complained about the people who were benefiting from the water crisis.
“Water should not be something we take advantage of, that is why we took a resolution in September last year together with the MECs of local governments, with the minister of Cogta and we prohibited transport by truck,” added Sisulu.
Sisulu said people who were employed by the service providers are urged to approach her department for employment.
“We are asking you to come forward, we could fully employ you in driving these trucks,” Sisulu said.
The Eastern Cape Black Business Forum welcomed Sisulu’s decision to expel “criminals” from the government system.
The forum’s executive director, Ace Ncobo, said: “We condemn corruption in the strongest terms and believe that anyone who conducts business using corrupt means is not a true businessman. We support the minister in her efforts to clean up the water and sanitation department and its entities ”.
Ncobo further said that for a service provider to be involved in acts of corruption with the state, there must be an equally corrupt government official working with them. He added that the minister should also look internally at the department.
The tanker trucks will fill hundreds of water tanks purchased by the department last year that are currently placed “strategically” in water-stressed areas to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, Sisulu added.
According to the minister, the water tanks are for disadvantaged communities at the moment, while the department was busy deploying infrastructure.
The acquisition of the tanker trucks, which will be managed by Amatola Water, will employ 44 people, Sisulu said.
“Each tanker will have a driver, a person who pours water into the tanks, and possibly a third person who will make sure the tanks are clean and properly cared for. As we provide them with the tanks, we also create job opportunities, ”Sisulu added.
Did you know that you can comment on this article? Subscribe to News24 and add your voice to the conversation.
