Deputy President Mashatile chooses politics over Republic, as Gauteng Water Crisis escalates
1 November 2024
Yesterday in Parliament, Deputy President, Paul Mashatile, responded to questions on actions he is taking against Gauteng's MEC for CoGTA, Jacob Mamabolo, and Premier Panyaza Lesufi over Gauteng's current water crisis, which Rand Water warned of since May this year.
Instead of putting politics aside, the Deputy President sought to protect Gauteng's officials, arguing National Government was intervening despite both spheres of government being aware of it almost 5 months ago.
The Deputy President is being misleading, as Minister Pemmy Majodina previously acknowledged the Department’s repeated interventions in Gauteng, which have proven ineffective while local governments persist in neglecting leak repairs, fail to improve revenue collection, and continue to delay repaying their outstanding debt to Rand Water.
While Mashtile conceded that earlier action could have been taken, his response of the Minister being "on the ground" to address Gauteng's water supply shortage is insufficient.