In Conversation With King Bongani Ramontja, Chairperson Soil Of Africa.
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Soil Of Africa Responds to Tshwane Multiparty Coalition’s Water Stabilisation Plan Soil Of Africa notes the statement issued by the Tshwane Multiparty Coalition Government regarding the launch of its Water Stabilisation Plan and the commissioning of 15 new municipal water tankers. While the City seeks to present this as progress, we state unequivocally: there is nothing to celebrate about water tankers in a metropolitan municipality in 2026.
A city with over 150 reservoirs, more than 10 000 km of reticulation network, and decades of institutional capacity cannot reduce itself to applauding trucks delivering water as if this is a developmental milestone. Water tankers are not a solution they are a symptom of systemic governance failure.
The Coalition itself admits that Tshwane is operating 32% above its licensed water allocation, that infrastructure is ageing, and that maintenance has been neglected for years. This is not a new crisis. It is the result of prolonged leadership failure, poor planning, and lack of accountability. What we are witnessing today is not a natural disaster it is an engineered collapse of public infrastructure.
We must ask: how does a metropolitan municipality become dependent on emergency water supply for basic human needs?
In communities like Ikageng in Mamelodi, residents living in bonded houses contributing to the economy and paying for services are still without reliable water. This is unacceptable. These are not informal settlements; these are established, formal communities. The dignity of working class and middle class citizens is being undermined daily.
A city with over 150 reservoirs, more than 10 000 km of reticulation network, and decades of institutional capacity cannot reduce itself to applauding trucks delivering water as if this is a developmental milestone. Water tankers are not a solution they are a symptom of systemic governance failure.
The Coalition itself admits that Tshwane is operating 32% above its licensed water allocation, that infrastructure is ageing, and that maintenance has been neglected for years. This is not a new crisis. It is the result of prolonged leadership failure, poor planning, and lack of accountability. What we are witnessing today is not a natural disaster it is an engineered collapse of public infrastructure.
We must ask: how does a metropolitan municipality become dependent on emergency water supply for basic human needs?
In communities like Ikageng in Mamelodi, residents living in bonded houses contributing to the economy and paying for services are still without reliable water. This is unacceptable. These are not informal settlements; these are established, formal communities. The dignity of working class and middle class citizens is being undermined daily.
