Phalaborwa held ransom, again

■ Joe Dreyer

Phalaborwa rate payers will have to make do with only 20% of their normal water supply as of Monday the 21st of March. And it is not their fault.

Lepelle Northern Water (LNW) announced earlier this month that the Ba-Phalaborwa Local Municipality (Phalaborwa) will only receive 20% of its normal water supply as from 21 March due to outstanding debt.

The outstanding debt to LNW is not owed to them by the Ba-Phalaborwa Municipality, nor the residents and ratepayers, but shockingly by the Mopani District Municipality. The District Municipality is responsible for paying LNW’s water bill from the money they receive from the Phalaborwa Municipality who in turn collects the money from its residents.

Not surprisingly, the ANC controls both the Phalaborwa and the District Municipalities.

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LNW indicated in their notice that the restriction on the water supply will only be lifted once the outstanding debt was settled or a repayment agreement was reached. According to a letter by the Director-General of the Department of Water and Sanitation, Sean Phillips, the Mopani District Municipality owed LNW R257 million on the 31st of January 2023.

The DA said in a statement that according to Phillips, the District Municipality is not paying off any new or old debt, nor is it honouring its repayment agreement. This is not the first time that Phalaborwa residents are being punished with water cuts due to the Mopani District Municipality’s non-payment of its water bill.

In May last year, residents also protested when Phalaborwa’s water supply was reduced to 20% as well. The water supply was restored after Mopani had settled a portion of its water debt.

“The FF Plus expressed its concern about the situation in an official letter to Ba-Phalaborwa’s acting municipal manager, Dr Kgoshi Lucas Pilusa, and demanded urgent intervention. The party also wants to know whether the Ba-Phalaborwa Municipality is paying residents’ payments for water to Mopani, and how much the Municipality owes Mopani for water.”

Loyal taxpayers are being punished for the ANC’s maladministration of the Ba-Phalaborwa Municipality and Mopani District Municipality.

“The ANC has destroyed the once prosperous Phalaborwa by playing political games and redeploying incompetent cadres from Ba-Phalaborwa in the District Municipality. Residents deserve better than the ANC,” said the DA’s Jana Pullen.

■ Joe Dreyer

Eugene Mulder (19) is Maandag, die 20ste Maart in die landdroshof op Phalaborwa borgtog van R5 000 toegestaan. Mulder word van die moord op Hannes van Dyk (59) aangekla en sal na verwagting weer op die 8ste Mei vanjaar weer in die hof verskyn.

Volgens berigte het Mulder en van Dyk in die vroeë oggendure van Saterdag die 11de Maart in ‘n onderonsie by ‘n gewilde nagklub, Royal Bliss, betrokke geraak waartydens Mulder blykbaar vir van Dyk met ‘n vuishou op die mond bygekom het. Van Dyk het na bewering in mekaar gesak en die polisie is ontbied. Met hulle aankoms op die toneel het die polisie vir van Dyk bewusteloos op die grond aangetref en die nooddienste ontbied. Hy is later, volgens die polisieverslag, in die hospitaal aan sy beserings dood.

Die oorsaak van sy dood is steeds nie bekend nie en na afloop van ‘n nadoodse ondersoek sal hierdie inligting aan die hof bekend gemaak word.

Die polisie op Phalaborwa het ook bevestig dat hulle ondersoek voort duur end at hulle die gerugte van ‘n bende jongmans wat ouer mans by kuierplekke teiken, ook ondersoek. Teen druktyd is daar geen verdere inligting bekend gemaak nie.

‘n Roudiens vir die ontslape sakeman is Vrydag, die 17de Maart, uit die NG Kerk op Phalaborwa gehou.

www.dwa.gov.za