The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) has come out guns blazing against Water and Sanitation Minister Nomvula Mokonyane’s decision to cut water supply to 30 municipalities‚ calling it an "evil" plan. Mokonyane announced on Monday that her department had issued notices to 30 defaulting municipalities‚ demanding they make arrangements to pay their share of R10.7bn, owed to several water authorities, before December 8. If no action is taken, bulk water suppliers will throttle supply to the municipalities‚ which will have to "replenish" their water reserves by paying up. In a statement, Samwu said it was disappointed with the department’s plans, saying the "evil plan would, essentially, leave millions of South Africans without water — which is, by the way, a basic right."
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