Potholes, water scarcity, and more: NCOP lists Limpopo’s top problems

Water provision, massive potholes and removal of families adjacent to Nandoni Dam are some of the problems discovered by the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) during a visit to Limpopo this week.

Led by Alec Nchabeleng, the delegation, started in Musina assessing the work of government in the past financial year and taking stock of how municipalities, provincial departments and state-owned enterprises (SOEs) spend their budgets from National Treasury to change the lives of ordinary citizens for the better.

Nchabeleng said access to clean running water was the biggest challenge faced by the people of Musina. “There is just no water there. The community of Musina depends on groundwater through boreholes.

The boreholes are drilled right in the middle of the Limpopo River.

“They work optimally when the river is dry, and during the rainy season the Vhembe district municipality will have to drill a new borehole because each time it rains the river fills up and borehole equipment is washed away,” said Nchabeleng.

The other problem is that the pipes that take water from the river to the purification plant are old. Some are 40 years old and no longer fit for purpose.

Nchabeleng said a solution would be to build a dam on Mutale River to provide water for Musina. “Discussion are underway on the construction of the dam.”

The second visit was to the off-ramp road leading to the newly built R640 million ring road to the Beitbridge border post.

“Potholes are the name of the game there. Some potholes are so huge they look like small dongas. We will take the matter up with the provincial government,” said Nchabeleng.

The NCOP’s third stop was the Nandoni pipeline project outside Thohoyandou. It carries water to Giyani’s Nsami Dam to be purified for communities and businesses in and around the town.

“There a war of words is brewing. The residents accuse the department of failing to compensate them after they were moved for the expansion of the dam. This is disturbing the progression of the R4.5 billion Giyani Bulk Water project.”