Dear Editor
In a significant victory for the health and safety of Nxuba residents, the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has confirmed an investigation into the ongoing sewage crisis in the Inxuba Yethemba Local Municipality (IYLM).
This follows the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) formal complaint to the SAHRC, which highlighted the dire situation of untreated sewage flowing into the Great Fish River, constituting both an environmental disaster and a human rights abuse.
The Great Fish River is a vital water resource and the contamination of it with raw sewage poses a grave threat to the health of residents and the surrounding ecosystem. The pollution can be greatly attributed to the Cradock Water Treatment Works not being fully operational and the IYLM and its water and sanitation service provider, the Chris Hani District Municipality (CHDM),not putting measures in place to mitigate the crisis.
I submitted our complaint to the Commission on 3 June, and was informed yesterday that the SAHRC’s Provincial Manager has accepted it, citing a prima facie violation of a human right. The matter has now been referred to the SAHRC’s Legal Services Programme for investigation.
We have consistently joined community members in alerting the IYLM, to the crisis, but they have repeatedly failed to take action.
Our complaint to the SAHRC requests the Commission to:
- Launch an urgent investigation into the sewage contamination of the Great Fish River and the municipalities’ failure to act.
- Assess the public health risks and the ecological impact caused by the ongoing discharge of raw sewage.
- Identify and hold accountable municipal officials whose inaction or mismanagement contributed to this crisis.
- Recommend immediate remedial action, including interim infrastructure measures and emergency support for affected residents.
- Ensure transparent and ongoing communication with the public regarding water safety, health risks, and remedial timelines.
- Recognise this as a violation of environmental and human rights as enshrined in the Constitution.
We will now closely monitor the SAHRC investigation and provide the community with feedback.
The people of Nxuba deserve better, and the DA will continue to fight tirelessly to protect their fundamental human rights to health and dignity.
Regards
Heinrich Müller MPL
DA EC Midlands Constituency Leader