POLOKWANE -The Polokwane Municipality joined this initiative and furnished Diteteng village, Moletji with VIP toilets for all households through the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) sanitation projects in the 2015/16 financial year.
This is according to a report send out by the municipality following the unfortunate death of another child who drowned in a pit toilet recently.
Even though there are still backlogs in other areas under the municipality, the MIG sanitation project has managed to build and complete 239 VIP toilets throughout the entire village of Diteteng where this latest tragedy happened.
In light of this the Department of Water and Sanitation Acting Regional Head, Lesiba Richard Tloubatla, called on communities to be vigilant, especially when it comes to the safety of children.
“As a province we have had the case of Michael Komape (5) who fell into a pit toilet while at school, and now we have this latest case of Omari Manono (3) also falling into an old pit toilet in Diteteng where the Polokwane Municipality built VIP toilets.
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As a department we are deeply concerned about these unfortunate deaths and we call on communities to ensure the pit toilets are closed or covered once the municipality built VIP toilets in your area. These VIP toilets are built so our children can be safe and our people can have their dignity restored. As we celebrate Mandela Month, let us all play a role in making sure our children are safe at all times,” Tloubatla said.
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In line with the National Development Plan, the Sustainable Development Goals, the Strategic Framework for Water Services and the Water Act (Act 36 of 1998), South Africa is accelerating the provision of water, hygiene and sanitation services for restoring the dignity of all, thereby improving the health and safety of especially women and children. The department will continue working with all the municipalities to make sure all the pit toilets around the province are eradicated.
On a different note, the department and municipality ask residents to use water sparingly and report any leakages of water pipes to the municipality for immediate attention.
