Social media comments and claims that the municipality has been deliberately denying members of the community access to water have led to this intervention. Municipal spokesperson Dika Kheswa has since denied these allegations, stating that those allegations are misleading. He said the municipality will do everything in its power to ensure that water is dispatched to all areas in need in a controlled and coordinated manner until load-shedding eases off and the water supply is restored.

“Most areas of Moqhaka Local Municipality, especially in Maokeng and Kroonstad, are currently without water as a result of the countrywide load-shedding. However, as the municipality we have dispatched about ten water trucks so that they will be able to deliver water where it is mostly needed, especially in the Maokeng area. We are not sure for how long this load-shedding is going to continue but we are trying our best to make sure that we mitigate the risk of water supply,’’ said Kheswa.

ALSO READ: Possible water cuts Moqhaka residents warned

Kheswa had previously warned residents to use water sparingly due to possible water cuts as a result of the unprecedented levels of load-shedding imposed by Eskom. He stated that the water system has since been negatively affected by load-shedding as most of the equipment relies on electricity for water supply.

ALSO READ: FS water concerns minister

Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu previously raised concerns over the state of infrastructure maintenance, poor water management, and municipalities' failure to pay debts. He said that on average, 40% of water across Free State municipalities is lost due to a lack of maintenance - resulting in leakages.

OFM News