Daily Archives: September 1, 2025

Water leaks ignored while residents go without

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By AGISANANG SCUFF

1 September 2025- The DA calls for immediate repair of major water leaks and urgent implementation of monitoring systems to address the crisis facing Matjhabeng residents. The DA said a recent oversight revealed shocking levels of water wastage, while residents suffer from water shedding and prolonged periods without supply.

DA councillor in Matjhabeng Local Municipality, Jessica Nel said the municipality’s failure to respond to massive water leakages is entirely unacceptable. Nel said in Ward 36, she identified several critical sites, where clean water is being wasted daily.

“At the Thusanong District Hospital reservoir, thousands of litres of water have been running to waste for months. Although two expensive quotations were submitted to the provincial government, a simple, cost-effective solution involving JoJo tanks could have been implemented at a fraction of the price.

“In 7de Laan, a municipal non-funded housing project, a leaking connection point continuously spills water. A basic tap installation would resolve the problem, yet nothing has been done,” she said.

Nel further said in Hospital Park (Baron and Antimoon Streets), a massive veld leakage has poured clean water into gutters and storm drains for weeks without repair. She added that these examples reflect a wider pattern across Matjhabeng.

“Leaks are ignored when no immediate solution is found, or responsibility is shifted between municipal, district, and provincial authorities.

“The result is enormous wastage of safe, costly drinking water, literally money down the drain,” said Nel.

She said although a WhatsApp reporting group exists for councillors, officials and Vaal Central Water, it is largely ineffective. Nel said that reports are ignored, accountability is lacking and residents continue to be without water.

“This neglect directly undermines the formal motion tabled by DA Cllr René Steyn earlier this year, which Council adopted. That motion called for rapid response to water leaks and burst pipes.

“He also called for proper road restoration after pipe repairs, capacity building in the Infrastructure Department. This includes regular reporting and accountability on water issues,” she said.

Nel said there is a need for oversight by the Water Crisis Ad Hoc Committee. She said despite the council’s adoption, the necessary measures have not been implemented, demonstrating the municipality’s disregard for its own commitments and duty to residents.

“The DA therefore demands immediate deployment of emergency teams to address major leaks, a dedicated WhatsApp group focused solely on emergency leaks and bursts.

This includes transparent monitoring of response times and repair progress.

“We demand escalation to provincial authorities, where officials fail to act. Accountability enforcement for officials who neglect their duties and it is unacceptable that preventable municipal mismanagement, not drought, causes water shortages,” said Nel.

She said they will persist until Matjhabeng addresses the leaks and restores reliable water service to all residents.

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DA welcomes progress on Foot and Mouth Disease prevention

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By BAKANG MOKOTO

1 September 2025- The Democratic Alliance (DA) said it welcomed the update by Minister of Agriculture, John Steenhuisen, on the measures being implemented to combat Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD). The DA said they note with particular importance that no new outbreaks have been recorded in the Eastern Cape since September 2024.

The DA spokesperson on Agriculture and Member of Parliament (MP), Willie Aucamp said Northern Cape and Western Cape remain FMD-free. Aucamp said there are currently 274 unresolved outbreaks in five provinces, of which 180 are in KwaZulu-Natal.

“KZN remains the epicentre of infection, and was the source of the Mpumalanga outbreak following the sale of infected cattle at auction.

“The announcement of a mid-scale vaccine production facility, due to be operational by March 2026, to strengthen South Africa’s self-reliance and reduce dependence on imports. Key steps to accelerate animal identification, expand diagnostic capacity, and intensify awareness campaigns,” he said.

Aucamp further said the establishment of an Industry–Government Task Team on animal disease prevention, management and control — a vital structure to ensure better coordination, enforcement, and accountability. He added that FMD has severe consequences for South Africa’s agricultural industry.

“It blocks export opportunities, increases costs for both producers and consumers and threatens jobs across the value chain. We are encouraged by the Minister’s commitments, but stresses that success will depend on an all-of-society approach.

“Farmers, industry, government, and civil society must all act responsibly and in the best interests of the agricultural sector and the broader economy,” said Aucamp.

He said the DA will continue to monitor the implementation of these measures, and hold the government accountable to ensure that FMD is brought under control and that South Africa’s agricultural industry is protected.

Meanwhile, Steenhuisen indicated that the Ministry of Agriculture has been flooded with media queries about the occurrence of foot-and-mouth disease in especially two provinces, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.

He said concerns were raised about meat safety and interventions from the Department of Agriculture to contain existing outbreaks and prevent future outbreaks.

“We would like to put the facts on the table and ask all citizens to make it their business to obtain knowledge about how to mitigate the spread of this disease.

“After all, biosecurity is everyone’s responsibility. The department has ordered 901 200 doses of vaccines to the value of over R70 million,” he said.

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Mashatile to visit ANC stalwart, the late Dikgang Moiloa’s family amid his passing

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Picture: ANC stalwart, the late Dikgang Uhuru Moiloa

By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

1 September 2025- The African National Congress (ANC) Deputy President, Paul Mashatile, will lead a homage visit to the family of the late Dikgang Uhuru Moiloa in Kagiso Township, near Krugersdorp.

The ANC national spokesperson, Mahlengi Bhengu said Moiloa was a loyal revolutionary, a servant of the people and a stalwart who dedicated his life to the struggle for liberation and the building of a democratic South Africa. Bhengu said Mashatile, joined by national and provincial leaders of the ANC, will pay respects to the family in honour of his contribution to the movement and the nation.

“The homage visit will take place at

Father Gerald Martin, Kagiso Township on Tuesday at 1pm,” she said.

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NCC uncovers non-compliance with CPA

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By REGINALD KANYANE

1 September 2025- As part of the efforts to ascertain compliance with the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), the National Consumer Commission (NCC) has conducted compliance inspections in Pinetown, Pietermaritzburg, Durban CBD, Springfield, Inanda, Umlazi and Pavilion Mall in KwaZulu-Natal.

The commission said these inspections are part of its efforts to ensure that unsafe and expired goods (goods that have passed their shelf-life) are removed from the shelves.

The NCC spokesperson, Phetho Ntaba said during these inspections, the NCC joined forces with the South African Police Services, the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS) and other enforcement agencies. Ntaba said they inspected food, clothing and blanket retailers, where various non-compliant practices to the CPA are still prevalent.

“The NCC inspectors uncovered widespread non-compliance in terms of product labelling. This includes goods on the shelves and refrigerators without ingredients, product descriptions, country of origin (in the case of clothing) or altered trade descriptions.

“This contravenes Section 24 of the CPA. This section requires that products be properly labelled with information like the country of origin, fibre content, and other prescribed information,” she said.

Ntaba further said in some cases, products were labelled in a foreign language. She added that these items include mayonnaise, vinegar and soya sauce.

“Some suppliers issue receipts that are written in a foreign language. This makes it difficult for consumers to interpret the receipt.

“This is a clear contravention of Section 22 of the CPA, which requires that goods must be written in plain and understandable language. The inspections further revealed that certain goods were sold while they had passed their sell-by, use-by or best-before dates,” said Ntaba.

She said the non-compliant goods include meat products. Ntaba said these items have the potential to cause harm and compromise the health of consumers.

“Some suppliers mixed food for human consumption and animal feed in one refrigerator.

“This practice compromises the quality of food, thus contravenes Section 55 of the CPA. Section 55 provides that every consumer has a right to goods that are of good quality, safe, and comply with applicable standards or any other public regulations,” she said.

Ntaba said another common practice identified during these inspections is that of suppliers who do not display the prices of goods, making it difficult for consumers to know the cost in advance.

She said this denies consumers the right to choose a supplier.

“Section 23(3) of the CPA stipulates that “suppliers of goods and services must not display any goods for sale without displaying to the consumer a price in relation to those goods.

“The Act further states that a price must be adequately displayed, expressed in the currency of the country, affixed to, written, printed, stamped, located upon, or applied to the goods or the band,” said Ntaba.

She said while suppliers generally issue sales records, however, these sales records are not consistent with the CPA. Ntaba said according to Section 26(3) of the CPA, a sales record or receipt,  must have the following information: the name of the supplier or registered business name, VAT number (if any), address of the premises, date on which the transaction occurred, name and description of any goods or services supplied, unit price of the goods, quantity, total price before any applicable taxes, and total of the transaction, including applicable taxes.

“Some sales records contained terms and conditions that are unfair to the consumers (no exchange). This violates Sections 48 and 51 of the Act.

“Some suppliers display notices indicating that they do not replace or provide a refund on repaired goods. Section 56(3) of the CPA states that “if a supplier repairs any particular goods or any components of any such goods, and within a period of three months after the repair, the failure defect, or unsafe feature has not been remedied, or a further failure, defect or unsafe feature is discovered, the supplier must replace the goods or refund the consumer the price paid by the consumer,” she said.

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Concerns over repayment of R36m based on ‘ghost contract’

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By OBAKENG MAJE

1 September 2025 – The Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration on Monday said it has noted with concern reports relating to the repayment of R36 million based on a “ghost contract” of the Government Pensions Administration Agency (GPAA).

The committee said this follows earlier media reports alleging that the GPAA paid Shula Developers, who allegedly misrepresented themselves as the landlord, R36 million upfront to lease a building for the GPAA’s headquarters.

The Chairperson of the Committee, Jan de Villiers said according to media reports, the developers paid the refund only after earlier reports revealed alleged irregularities. De Villiers said the refund reportedly did not include interest, which amounts to approximately R4 million.

“Responding to the report by News24, the committee will seek clarity on why such a large upfront payment was allegedly authorised, if the underlying contract was fraudulent and why the repayment was allegedly made only after the matter was reported in the media.

“The committee also wants to know which GPAA officials authorised the payment and whether they will face consequences if wrongdoing is confirmed,” he said.

De Villiers further said the committee will also seek clarity on whether the arrangement between the GPAA and Shula Developers constitutes potential corruption that now requires accountability from both the company and implicated officials. He added that the committee also expressed concern about reports that R26 million was paid to Dikeamo Architects for office designs linked to the same building.

“Not only would this represent wasteful expenditure on a property that could never be leased, but the sum itself appears unusually high for architectural planning services,” said the Chairperson.

“The committee will seek clarity on whether this payment was justified and whether there was any misrepresentation,” said de Villiers.

He said the committee will invite the GPAA to appear before it to account and outline steps being taken to investigate and recover any losses. De Villiers said the committee will write to the Auditor-General, the National Treasury and relevant law enforcement authorities to ensure that the full facts are established.

“They should ensure that an appropriate financial recovery, including interest, is pursued and that any proven corruption is dealt with decisively through consequence management and prosecution.

“GEPF members and pensioners entrust the government with their life savings. To see those funds placed at risk through such allegations is unacceptable,” he said.

De Villiers said the committee remains committed to ensuring that this matter is thoroughly investigated and that accountability is enforced.

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