Residents left without water as plumber budget depleted in eThekwini
Plumbers contracted to the eThekwini Municipality have not been called out to fix leaking pipes since February 1 because of an alleged unavailability of money to pay them.
Speaking on a condition of anonymity, a plumber contracted to the municipality claimed that since Monday contractors were not called out for jobs. The municipality has 120 plumbers and the same number of contractors.
“In the past 28 days a handful of contractors were working. The city does not have money to pay category-A plumbers. These plumbers can repair any pipe. The city is not calling us because they cannot pay us,” she said.
eThekwini municipality ward 35 Councillor Bradley Singh said he reported multiple water leaks in the uMhlanga and La Lucia suburbs only to learn that there were no plumbers available. Singh claimed that since Friday, some residents of uMhlanga Ridge have been without water. Singh said that on Tuesday, Glenashley and Virginia also experienced water shortages, as the Virginia reservoir and tower were empty
“The city has not provided any explanation for the reservoir's depletion. In areas where water is available, requests for plumbers have gone unanswered for over 72 hours; it was shocking to hear that no plumbers are available. When clarification was sought, there was no response,” Singh said.
Singh said concerns are mounting among residents, as many areas remain without water, yet the city claims there are no plumbers to fix the leaks.
“There are rumours that plumbers met with city officials last month due to dissatisfaction, and senior water officials have indicated they have not been paid. Given the city's lack of plumbers, these rumours may hold some truth, and the city must provide answers,” Singh said.
The municipality did not respond to a media query about the contractors at the time of publication. However, Democratic Alliance (DA) eThekwini Executive Committee (Exco) member Yogis Govender said a war room meeting was held on Wednesday morning where the water and sanitation unit expected to reinstate plumbing contractors on Thursday.
“The unit confirmed that the budget for plumbers was depleted. I am not sure how many contractors will be utilised,” she said.
At a municipal Executive Committee (Exco) meeting on Friday the city said they had 4,000 water pipe leaks on the system that they were working on.
At the meeting the municipal management debated on whether they could incorporate the contractors into the municipality’s staff compliment. They have been utilising contractors for the past 10 years and city management then took into consideration the cost factor which includes depots and vehicles.
City Manager Musa Mbhele on Friday called for a strict monitoring of plumbers to get value added service. Mbhele said if they absorb the contractors into the municipal system they will drag their feet when it comes to work. Mbhele said some contractors were either deliberately fixing pipes incorrectly or they were incompetent.
“When they fix a pipe they do shoddy workmanship. After they repair you will find another leak under the tarmac in the same spot. They dig the hole, leave it uncovered and surround it with danger tape.The tape flies away. We have man-made pot holes everywhere. I am not certain what is going wrong with city supervision. That alone has an impact on the water loss and the quality of roads are compromised,” Mbhele said.
eThekwini Mayor Cyril Xaba said contractors must be taken to task for poor workmanship.
zainul.dawood@inl.co.za