THE CHAIRPERSON of the Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation, Robert Mashego, has raised grave concern with the recent cholera outbreak in the City of Tshwane, and has extended words of condolences to the families of the 15 individuals who have passed on as a result of the outbreak.
While the Chairperson notes the level of anger and despair within the municipality, he has called for calm and collaboration between society as a whole and government to ensure that strategies are put in place to arrest the situation and stop the spread of the infection.
Mashego also called on all stakeholders to leave no stone unturned in finding the source of the contamination and ensure thorough disinfections and cleaning.
Furthermore, the Chairperson does not want to apportion fault before a thorough assessment with conclusive results is done and processes are put in place to remedy the situation. With this said, there is a need for a comprehensive education process to inform and educate the residents on how best to deal with the outbreak and easy cleaning methods that could be used in households to clean water.
The committee reiterates its call made during its previous visit to the area that there must be long term solution to the poor quality drinking water in the area.
Also, various interventions were suggested that would have been implemented to ensure that the people of the area receive quality water.
“The investigation to be undertaken must provide a framework to be followed to ensure that this eventuality does not happen again. The people of Hammanskraal deserve much better service as guaranteed by the Constitution,” Mashego said.
Meanwhile the Chairperson has noted briefings on the outbreak by various departmental Deputy Ministers and critical stakeholders.
The Chairperson appreciates the collaborative effort from all spheres of government that will ensure that the country, as always, overcomes this problem.
The Chairperson also encouraged communities to follow instructions given on the treatment of water to endure safety.
Gift of the Givers has heeded the call and delivered thousands of litres of water to a hospital in Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria on Monday.
According to the Gift of the Givers spokesperson, Ali Sablay, its team of volunteers was activated at the Jubilee Hospital after receiving a call from the Moretele Local Municipality’s Mayor Councillor Masango George Manyike on Sunday.
He said Manyike asked for assistance from the organisation following the tragedy that struck.
“It was announced, on Sunday, that there was a cholera outbreak in the area after lab results were positive for the stool specimens of 19 people who presented at Jubilee District Hospital with symptoms of diarrhoea, stomach cramps and nausea.
“At least 15 people have been confirmed dead due to a cholera outbreak and over 50 people have been treated,” Sablay said.
A total of 1 440 five-litres and 140 10-litres of bottled water was delivered to the health facility.
Image (A poster sign of ‘Stop Cholera’ placed outside the Hammanskraal Hospital after the outbreak that claimed lives this week).
