PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has apologized to the residents of Hammanskraal, north of Tshwane.
Ramaphosa and other government ministers, including Minister of Water and Sanitation Senzo Mchunu and Minister of Health Dr Joe Phaahla, visited the Rooiwal Wastewater Treatment Plant and later addressed the community at Temba Stadium on Thursday, 8 June.
The President said he saw a very bad side at the plant because it's not in a condition to give anyone confidence that good water cleaning is taking place.
He said the government failed to provide residents with clean running water. He added that even though the investigations are still being made, he wants to find out exactly what led to the death of at least 29 people and the source of cholera.
"The fact that you don't have clean running water is enough for us to be extremely concerned about exercising your rights as people of our country," he said.
"Phaahla says they are still trying to find the real source. We accept that those investigations will continue until we find the source of the cause," he added.
Ramaphosa further said the water problem in Rooiwal and Hammanskraal began years ago.
ALSO READ | Residents shut down TLOF TLOF pill spaza shop!
"The national Department of Water has on number of occasions raised the challenge of water in Tshwane. They even wrote a letter to take them to court because of the incompetence of local government, they didn't do what they were meant to do," he said.
He said the other problem is financial and argued that they didn't cater a sizeable budget to maintain water works and expand them because the population has been growing in Tshwane.
Ramaphosa said that the project to revamp and expand the Rooiwal Waterworks would cost R4 billion in almost three years.
Whiles Mchunu said this kind of incident should not happen in future.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi added that every month from 16 June until July 2024, they will employ 6000 workers.
"Water supply is not positive for cholera. We will cast the net wide to determine the source," Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink said.
Resident Tebogo Rapodile said many investigations were done previously, and they want a handover to the new leadership of those past investigations.
