Sabotaging water infrastructure jeopardises everyone’s life

WATER levels across the country are at critical levels due to a scorching heatwave sweeping the country, exacerbated by poor summer rainfall currently experienced.

With water resources around the country at alarmingly low levels, a clear clarion call is being made for collective water conservation action, cutting across the barriers of gender and race. Answering the call starts by reporting those who are tempering with the water infrastructure, aimed at delivering clean potable water to our homes and industries.

Every single life depends on both raw and potable water, as enshrined in the bill of rights that every citizen has the right to clean water – a necessity for survival. But yet, as citizens, we turn a blind eye and protect selfish individuals, who continue to damage and steal water infrastructure, at the expense of the nation’s basic right. Vandalism should be seen as an act of sabotage to our very source of life.

More and more South Africans are constantly falling victim to poor service delivery, caused by infrastructure vandalism and theft of copper, necessary for delivering potable water in both households and industries – either stolen or vandalised by people we know and hang around with in our respective communities.

The unemployment rate should not be seen as a reason or permission to vandalise water infrastructure in the country, as it is a short-sighted act that lacks vision because there is no life without water.

A clarion call to all citizens, young and old, to get their “hands on deck” to combat acts of vandalism, aimed at endangering our lives through loss of potable water sources. Water flowing in the infrastructure network is like blood flowing in the veins of every living human and animal, necessary for sustaining life.

Collectively, it is our responsibility to protect the infrastructure that gives us life.

Unaccounted loss of water, due to vandalism and failure to repair burst pipes, puts more strain on our already strained water resources.

The municipality repairs your leaking pipes so, in households and industries, repair any sources of water leakages.

The community must report theft and vandalism to local authorities. Water has no substitute.

MARCUS MONYAKENI Communications Department of Water and Sanitation