The Vhembe District Municipality (VDM) as the local water authority has missed its first deadline with regard to the court order to restore the water supply to Makhado (Louis Trichardt) and surrounds.

The VDM met the first two deadlines but missed the third. The North Gauteng High Court order states that the VDM will finalise the designs of the infrastructure and pumps to couple the boreholes (newly drilled) to the reticulation network on or before 31 October, and will submit the designs to the AfriForum attorneys. Interestingly enough, the VDM determined the deadline date as it appears in the court order.

A day before the third deadline, local AfriForum chairperson Mr Wally Shultz received a letter from the VDM explaining why they could not meet the deadline. “The municipality could not manage to meet the deadline due to the long process to be followed when appointment of service provider is made as required by the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA),” reads the letter.

“Surely the Vhembe team members, advised by a professional legal team of experts, were aware of the process before they agreed to this deadline, which they themselves actually suggested. Meeting the deadlines as spelled out in the court order is pivotal to the successful outcome of this long drawn-out saga and cannot be ignored. While Vhembe have, in theory, met the first two due deadlines timeously by submitting written responses, the details of their responses are way off from what the order calls for. The Vhembe team then disappointed us by not meeting their third deadline,” Schultz said.

The local AfriForum branch urged their legal team in Pretoria to take the toughest possible action to enforce compliance.

“…the time frame established in the court order was done with the understanding that these dates were final…” writes the AfriForum attorney, Mr Werner Human, of Hurter Spies Incorporated. The attorneys perceive that “the sense of urgency that was present… is fading.”

Vhembe did, however, receive an extension till 7 November, but the date slipped by without the design's being submitted. Human said on Tuesday that steps would definitely be taken. “We could either go the route of application to compel or the route of contempt of court,” Human said.

Schultz said that Vhembe would have to treat the water issue as a matter of urgency “or face the serious consequences of further court action to force compliance and accountability.” He did not want to entertain the possibility that the town’s water would not be restored by the court-ordered goal of mid-December.

To aid in the monitoring, Schultz wants a working committee to be formed. “I have spoken to the Vhembe municipal manager, who has agreed to the forming of a joint working committee to ensure stringent monitoring of the process. What we really want, is water,” Schultz said.