Residents of the eNkanini informal settlement in Makhanda face a daily struggle to access one of their most basic human rights: sufficient water. This entails walking great distances, a tedious and exhausting part of their daily lives.
The Makana Municipality, which encompasses Makhanda, has been plagued by a devastating water crisis that has intensified over the years, severely impacting residents. The situation in eNkanini is particularly dire. Residents lack access to running water, and municipal water tankers infrequently visit the area. Furthermore, only a select few can afford to purchase their own water tanks
To alleviate the community’s suffering, the Democratic Alliance (DA) Caucus in the Eastern Cape Legislature made a timely donation today – a water tank to provide much-needed access to water. Water is life and we donated this water tank as a gesture towards restoring dignity to this community. We would also like to extend our gratitude to Makana Brick for generously sponsoring the bricks used to construct the platform for the water tank.
Access to water is not only a basic human right, but also a vital component of dignity. Regrettably, in the Eastern Cape, many of our citizens still lack access to water, 31 years into our democracy. Similarly, in municipalities such as Makana, where there is access to water, residents face the dire consequences of crumbling infrastructure and service delivery collapse, also limiting their access.
We will not fail the citizens of the Eastern Cape, we will continue to fix what we can, using our own resources, where municipalities fail to fulfil their duties. We will continue this work until we take over government in municipalities and turn service delivery around.
The DA in the Eastern Cape Legislature pledges to continue fighting for the people of the province, ensuring they live a meaningful life of hope, dignity, and access to their basic human rights, as enshrined in our Constitution.