The OR Tambo district municipality is to spend millions replacing old and worn-out water meters in all its five local municipalities.
This is part of an ongoing project which started last year where 4300 old water meters were replaced at a cost of R32-million.
The mayor’s spokesman, Ayongezwa Lungisa, could not say how much had been allocated this year to replace 7000 water meters. “From time to time, water meters need to be replaced to make sure that they conform to 21st-century technology,” Lungisa said.
“It’s part of data cleansing. This will make sure that they are able to adapt to new technology.”
In June last year, the municipality appointed Sebata Municipal Services to replace the old water meters.
In a notice published in the Daily Dispatch on April 20, it was stated that the private service provider had discovered that 7000 more water meters needed overhauling.
It further stated that since the initial contract had been based on the number of the meters, the initial budget had already been exhausted while the contract was still in place. As such, the district municipality was in the process of amending the contract agreement with Sebata to cover the 7000 meters for the remainder of the contractor.
Most of the old meters are located in the King Sabata Dalindyebo local municipality which incorporates Mthatha, Mqanduli and Coffee Bay towns.
At the moment, only 7% of the total population in the district pay water rates, according to Lungisa, as the other 93% receive RDP standard water supply. In previous years, some residents and businesses had complained about what they termed “incorrect billing” on their water usage by district authorities which saw them being charged exorbitant amounts for water usage. Some of them alleged that they had been charged for water usage although their sites were unoccupied and unbuilt.
But Lungisa dismissed suggestions that some of the old water meters were faulty which led to incorrect billing.
He said the exercise was merely part of their data cleansing strategy aimed at ensuring that all water meters were compatible with the technology.
Asked where the money would come from if the initial budget had already been exhausted, Lungisa claimed the municipality had been able to collect substantial amounts from ratepayers since last year for water usage.
“There are 18000 water meters in the district with 14000 of them in KSD. But they cannot all be replaced in one financial year,” he said.
O R Tambo District Chamber of Business president, Vuyisile Ntlabati, said they had no problem with replacing thousands of old meters, provided the move would help ensure that water users were billed correctly.
“There have been queries in the past,” he said.
Lungisa said the notice in the Dispatch was aimed at soliciting input from the general public of OR Tambo on the replacing of the 7000 meters.
The issue would then be taken to council for a decision. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
Updated water meters for ORT
This is part of an ongoing project which started last year where 4300 old water meters were replaced at a cost of R32-million.
The mayor’s spokesman, Ayongezwa Lungisa, could not say how much had been allocated this year to replace 7000 water meters. “From time to time, water meters need to be replaced to make sure that they conform to 21st-century technology,” Lungisa said.
“It’s part of data cleansing. This will make sure that they are able to adapt to new technology.”
In June last year, the municipality appointed Sebata Municipal Services to replace the old water meters.
In a notice published in the Daily Dispatch on April 20, it was stated that the private service provider had discovered that 7000 more water meters needed overhauling.
It further stated that since the initial contract had been based on the number of the meters, the initial budget had already been exhausted while the contract was still in place. As such, the district municipality was in the process of amending the contract agreement with Sebata to cover the 7000 meters for the remainder of the contractor.
Most of the old meters are located in the King Sabata Dalindyebo local municipality which incorporates Mthatha, Mqanduli and Coffee Bay towns.
At the moment, only 7% of the total population in the district pay water rates, according to Lungisa, as the other 93% receive RDP standard water supply. In previous years, some residents and businesses had complained about what they termed “incorrect billing” on their water usage by district authorities which saw them being charged exorbitant amounts for water usage. Some of them alleged that they had been charged for water usage although their sites were unoccupied and unbuilt.
But Lungisa dismissed suggestions that some of the old water meters were faulty which led to incorrect billing.
He said the exercise was merely part of their data cleansing strategy aimed at ensuring that all water meters were compatible with the technology.
Asked where the money would come from if the initial budget had already been exhausted, Lungisa claimed the municipality had been able to collect substantial amounts from ratepayers since last year for water usage.
“There are 18000 water meters in the district with 14000 of them in KSD. But they cannot all be replaced in one financial year,” he said.
O R Tambo District Chamber of Business president, Vuyisile Ntlabati, said they had no problem with replacing thousands of old meters, provided the move would help ensure that water users were billed correctly.
“There have been queries in the past,” he said.
Lungisa said the notice in the Dispatch was aimed at soliciting input from the general public of OR Tambo on the replacing of the 7000 meters.
The issue would then be taken to council for a decision. — sikhon@dispatch.co.za
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