Phum’lamqashi residents have intensified their protest amid the ongoing water crisis, rejecting temporary relief measures and calling for a permanent water solution.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) confirmed that water tankers dispatched to the area were chased away by community members, who insisted they no longer want temporary solutions such as JoJo tanks.
Resident Nomsa Ndaba told GLOBE POST that the community will continue protesting until their demands are met. “We decided to continue the protest today because we don’t need temporary solutions like water tanks. We want permanent water. We will stop protesting only when we get a lasting solution,” she said.
Community leader, Jeffry Mphohoni, highlighted that the community has lost trust in temporary interventions. “We are sick and tired of this issue. Those JoJo tanks have not been maintained. If the community says they don’t want them, I support that because Johannesburg Water failed to maintain them. As we speak, they haven’t been cleaned since 2024,” he said.
Addressing residents, Johannesburg Water official, Nondumiso Mabuza, acknowledged the community’s concerns.
“The reason for the water outages is that we failed to pay for water tankers. There are many challenges within Johannesburg Water and the City of Johannesburg. The main issue is that we do not have sufficient funds,” said Mabuza.
Mabuza added that officials will return on 7 April at New Generation Combined School to further engage with residents. She also noted that restoring water through reopening a previously used valve is not possible, as it has already been disconnected and a new system is under construction. In the meantime, the department has introduced boreholes in Phum’lamqashi as part of efforts to ease the crisis.
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