AfriForum’s Naboomspruit branch has reported the Mookgophong Municipality to the health division of the Waterberg District Council. A visit to the town’s water purification plant has revealed several disgusting conditions at the plant.
According to Philip van Staden, chair of the AfriForum Naboomspruit branch, the conditions at the plant are simply unacceptable. “Untreated sewage flows from a congested sump some 30 metres from the open dams where the town’s water is supposed to be purified. Following the visit AfriForum has laid charges with the health division,” Van Staden said.
Health inspectors of the district council have visited the site and warned the municipality that the situation is to be rectified within 21 days.
The list of identified problems is as follows:
- Untreated sewage flows from a congested sump where the process controllers have their living quarters;
- There is no hand basin in the toilet;
- There is no kitchen for the workers to prepare their food; they are forced to do it in their rooms or under a tree;
- There is no toilet seat or a toilet paper holder in the toilet, and the only toilet has to be shared with a team of construction workers;
- The feeder pipe in die toilet is leaking;
- The rubbish bin is seldom emptied and rubbish is strewn all over;
- The roofs of the living quarters are leaking when there’s a downpour;
- The bedrooms are in a very poor condition and dirty; and
- The drain of the Nyl pump station has been blocked for months on end and staff members’ requests for it to be cleared are ignored.
“AfriForum sincerely appreciates the urgency with which the health division has taken over the issue. We are grateful to have a partner who doesn’t hesitate to take a stand against the poor conditions at the purification works,” Van Staden added.
