'Buy water tankers'

SUPPORT: GOVERNMENT CALLS FOR MUNICIPALITIES TO INSOURCE BACKUP >>> Move gets thumbs up from DA in Gauteng.

- Itumeleng Mafisa

A call by the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Pemmy Majodina for municipalities to procure their own water tankers has found an unlikely ally in a long-term political critic, the DA.

Majodina on Monday said Johannesburg had already procured 20 water tankers. These will belong to the municipality.

"We started in March to encourage all the municipalities that have contracts for water tankers to start negotiating out of those contracts," she said.

"Let municipalities insource their water tankering."

DA shadow MEC for infrastructure development in Gauteng Nico de Jager yesterday told The Citizen that this is necessary to save municipalities money.

"Municipalities must buy water tankers. They should not be using water tanker contracts.

"This is because you will always have a burst pipe, not because of government failure. It does not matter where you are in the world, you will always have a burst pipe.