Roger Ronnie’s emotive comments on Johannesburg Water’s Operation Gcin’amanzi (September 12) are based on misinformation and unfamiliarity with the facts.
It is important to refer to some of the most glaring errors in Ronnie’s arguments and to comment on the wrong conclusions he reaches based on these inaccuracies.
Ronnie constructs his argument on the fallacious premise that the cost of water in Soweto “is almost eight times more than what those in Sandton pay for the same amount of water”. Unfortunately, where he gets this erroneous information from is not stated.
The fact is that the people of Soweto (and Johannesburg) receive some of the best-quality water in the world at exceptionally reasonable rates, which are uniformly applied across the city. Every month the first 6 000 litres of water is free in terms of the government’s programme on free basic services.
In Soweto residents are charged a flat rate on the assumption that 20 000 litres of water is used and that the property is situated on a 300m2 stand. The rate charged is R103,40 for water and sanitation services. This is exactly the same rate that would be charged for a household anywhere in the city that uses 20 000 litres and has a stand size of 300m2.
Every litre of water consumed in excess of the basic allocation is currently delivered to consumers at less than 1c a litre. Currently R1 will buy you more than 100 litres of water.
Ronnie goes on to argue that the 6 000 litres of free water “almost equals” the amount of effluent that is used when a toilet is flushed twice. Perhaps he should have his plumbing system checked because this estimate is way off the mark and a serious reflection on the government’s free basic services programme.
In the real world people do save a lot of money every month by cutting down on the wastage of water and treating it as a valuable resource. In Stretford X11, Orange Farm, 75% of residents pay nothing for their water and sanitation because they manage their monthly consumption to less than 6 000 litres a month. A further 23% pay less than R30 a month. There are no examples here of residents enduring hardship, or of the development of unhygienic conditions.
Surely this is an improvement on the R103,40 that Soweto residents currently pay as deemed consumption according to the flat rate.
Ronnie must be aware of the vast volumes of water that are unaccounted for in Soweto every day because of the ageing reticulation network. We can fill the FNB stadium, from the pitch to the top of the stands, eight times every day with the water that gets “lost” within the network — a total of seven billion litres a month.
Currently the consumer in Soweto pays for this unaccounted water in terms of the flat rate. We want to change this situation so that every household only pays for the water it consumes.
Ronnie argues that “pre-payment meters in themselves do not stop leakages”. This is correct, but he fails to inform his readers about the pro-active steps taken by Johannesburg Water to put an end to these losses.
This includes a new reticulation network, new pipes in every street and every household, and a free inspection of plumbing fixtures in every home as well as the replacement of faulty and defective taps, cisterns and basins — free of charge.
This exercise, on its own, is a massive investment by Johannesburg Water in the quality of service delivery to the people of Soweto.
Added to this service comes the introduction of pre-payment meters — also free of charge — to enable consumers to take ownership of their water consumption. This is a powerful instrument in the hands of consumers to provide them with the ability to cut down on wastage, manage their consumption and slice the current flat-rate water bill by more than two-thirds.
This is a very welcome measure to ensure “the active participation of the communities in the management of their water”, that Ronnie so strongly supports.
The fact is that Johannesburg Water has extensively consulted communities and stakeholders in Soweto prior to the introduction of the new system. Operation Gcin’amanzi was launched in Phiri last week with the full support of the mayor of Johannesburg, the mayoral committee and the democratically elected councillors representing the people of Soweto.
To set the record straight, Johannesburg Water is a public utility, wholly owned by the city (and the people) of Johannesburg. Decisions on policy, strategy and tariffs are taken by elected representatives and implemented by Johannesburg Water.
We have a commitment to provide quality water at affordable prices to the people of Johannesburg. We are confident that the introduction of Operation Gcin’amanzi will enable us to better our delivery on this mandate.
Councillor Brian Hlongwa is a member of the Johannesburg mayoral committee.