Water consumers in the city may soon face drastic water restrictions and the further drilling of boreholes may be restricted after the municipality’s allocation from Lepelle Northern Water has recently been reduced with 15%.
This was announced by Polokwane Executive Mayor Thembi Nkadimeng during a meeting with residents of Ward 21 in the city last Wednesday evening. Nkadimeng explained that The Department of Water and Sanitation had to limit the water quotas of municipalities as a result of the country wide water crisis. “The boreholes that are utilised by the municipality to augment the supply from LNW are not a reliable source of sustainable water on the long term and the use of water from residents’ own boreholes is escalating to such extent that the groundwater resources are placed under pressure,” Nkadimeng said. In a joint statement issued by the municipality and LNW last Thursday, it was announced that the two authorities will work together to “look at urgent alternatives that can be used as relief measures”.
Nkadimeng also dealt with concerns regarding incorrect billing and said that officials of the relevant strategic business unit will soon be deployed in the community during given time slots to entertain queries from the public.
Regarding the difference between the property rates of some urban and rural areas, Nkadimeng explained that the urban areas are currently subsidising the rural areas but that the situation is under revision.
Education MEC Polly Boshielo also took the podium to provide the admission figures of public schools in the city and reiterated that the 500 pupils that were not placed at schools in the city on the first school day, were all from outside the city and had also not applied in advance. “Children from a specific area are given priority to be placed at a school in their area. The problem, however, is that parents want to place children at the school of their choice,” Boshielo explained and added that there is a school in the city with vacancies but parents elect to take their children elsewhere.
She thanked Nkadimeng for the municipality’s generosity to make available land next to Laerskool Piet Hugo for the construction of temporary classrooms if necessary and said that the Department of Education will look into the possibilities, also considering availability of funding.
Story: BARRY VILJOEN
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