uMkhonto weSizwe Party Demands Urgent Debate on South Africa's Water Crisis

• The uMkhonto weSizwe Party demanded an urgent parliamentary debate on South Africa's escalating water crisis
• The party called on Parliament to investigate how the crisis escalated, and demand accountability from President Cyril Ramaphosa
• Officials at Rand Water urged residents to conserve water amid pressure on supply systems and ongoing disruptions

Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.

KWAZULU NATAL - The uMkhonto weSizwe Party has asked Parliament to convene an urgent debate on South Africa's worsening water crisis.

MKP submitted a formal request

The party said it submitted a formal request for a snap debate under Rule 130(1). It said the move was prompted by widespread water shortages, polluted supply, failing sewage systems and collapsing wastewater treatment works across the country.

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MKP national spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela said the crisis has shifted from a municipal service delivery problem to a national governance failure. He said millions of South Africans are denied their constitutional right to sufficient water, with serious consequences for dignity, public health and safety. Ndhlela said failing water infrastructure threatens public health, weakens agriculture and industry, damages the environment through untreated sewage and undermines investor confidence in the Government of National Unity.

The party called on Parliament to investigate how the crisis escalated, demand accountability from President Cyril Ramaphosa for commitments made in the 2025 State of the Nation Address, and identify immediate national interventions to stabilise water security. It said it would continue using parliamentary mechanisms to protect constitutional rights.

Water shortages in several provinces

The request comes amid ongoing water shortages in several provinces. In Gauteng, some areas have experienced prolonged outages. Midrand has been among the worst affected, with some residents reporting more than 10 days without water. Residents staged peaceful protests in Midrand, while similar demonstrations took place in Laudium, west of Pretoria.

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Rand Water said persistently high consumption in Gauteng, particularly in Johannesburg and Tshwane, is placing strain on the bulk supply system. Spokesperson Makenosi Maroo said consumption has exceeded allocated volumes and negatively affected supply in parts of the network. She said Rand Water will reduce supply to high-consuming municipalities to stabilise the system and restore supply in affected areas. She urged municipalities and consumers to use water sparingly.

According to IOL, WaterCAN executive director Dr Ferrial Adam criticised public communication around the crisis. She said information is fragmented, overly technical and often filtered through political channels, which undermines public trust. Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero said the city is working to stabilise reservoirs and that supply in Midrand should improve after a week of disruptions. He said reservoir levels are slowly recovering following a series of system failures.

Critically low levels

He added that a power trip at the Zuikerbosch Treatment Plant on 27 January affected the Eikenhof and Zwartkoppies systems, while another power failure at Palmiet on 31 January further destabilised supply. These incidents led to critically low levels at the Klipfontein Reservoir, which feeds the Midrand system. A leak at the reservoir was later repaired, and commissioning was completed on 2 February. Several Joburg Water reservoirs were affected, including Grand, President Park, Grand Central, Rabie Ridge and Diepsloot.

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Joburg Water said the Midrand system remains constrained. Some reservoirs are at fair levels, while others remain critically low. Most suburbs have water, but restoration is slow due to high demand. Joburg Water and Rand Water said they are operating at full pumping capacity and providing alternative water supply where possible. Reservoirs showing improvement include Rabie Ridge, Randjesfontein Tower, Development Bank Tower and Steyn City Tower.

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Source: Briefly News