City of eThekwini Gives Residents the Middle Finger as it Appeals Sewage Ruling
Michael Beaumont and Zwakele Mncwango
ActionSA National Chairperson and ActionSA KZN Provincial Chairperson
The City of eThekwini has arrogantly and shamelessly filed an appeal to ActionSA’s successful High Court ruling stating that it must fulfil its constitutional obligation to provide clean water to residents.
Through this appeal being filed, the city sends the message that it has no interest in fixing the problem of chronic infrastructure under-investment it created, and that residents must make peace with their rivers, lagoons, and beaches overflowing with untreated sewage.
ActionSA’s court victory in the Pietermaritzburg High Court was a landmark judgement in a country where more and more municipalities are violating the constitutional rights of South Africans to a clean environment and one that is not harmful to their health as sewage infrastructure collapses around the country. Any municipality with respect for the constitution would have respected the court judgement and focussed their energies on fixing the problems.
It ruled that eThekwini had failed a constitutional mandate to maintain water infrastructure to prevent untreated sewage from flowing into the environment. The metro has been instructed by the Court to publicly release weekly E.Coli readings, and to prepare an action plan which will see deadlines set for the repair of wastewater related infrastructure.
ActionSA notes this shameless move by the City of eThekwini, and vows to not let the municipality get away with trying to appeal the judgement.
The residents of eThekwini deserve better leaders. They deserve leaders that won’t desperately plead with courts to overturn a ruling forcing them to do their job.
This is why ActionSA will contest municipalities across South Africa, especially so that this class is leadership is swept out office and replaced with credible, capable leaders with a record of service and who are ready to put residents first.
City of eThekwini Gives Residents the Middle Finger as it Appeals Sewage Ruling
The City of eThekwini has arrogantly and shamelessly filed an appeal to ActionSA’s successful High Court ruling stating that it must fulfil its constitutional obligation to provide clean water to residents.
Through this appeal being filed, the city sends the message that it has no interest in fixing the problem of chronic infrastructure under-investment it created, and that residents must make peace with their rivers, lagoons, and beaches overflowing with untreated sewage.
ActionSA’s court victory in the Pietermaritzburg High Court was a landmark judgement in a country where more and more municipalities are violating the constitutional rights of South Africans to a clean environment and one that is not harmful to their health as sewage infrastructure collapses around the country. Any municipality with respect for the constitution would have respected the court judgement and focussed their energies on fixing the problems.
It ruled that eThekwini had failed a constitutional mandate to maintain water infrastructure to prevent untreated sewage from flowing into the environment. The metro has been instructed by the Court to publicly release weekly E.Coli readings, and to prepare an action plan which will see deadlines set for the repair of wastewater related infrastructure.
ActionSA notes this shameless move by the City of eThekwini, and vows to not let the municipality get away with trying to appeal the judgement.
The residents of eThekwini deserve better leaders. They deserve leaders that won’t desperately plead with courts to overturn a ruling forcing them to do their job.
This is why ActionSA will contest municipalities across South Africa, especially so that this class is leadership is swept out office and replaced with credible, capable leaders with a record of service and who are ready to put residents first.