Horror of horrors... the multimillion rand Nandoni Dam is bursting at its seams, but villagers in neighbouring communities are in dire need of water.

One of the communities in this situation is Phaphazela village outside Malamulele, a stone’s throw from the water. The situation at Phaphazela is so desperate that villagers have resorted to sharing dirty water with wild and domesticated animals, thus putting their health on the line.

Villagers and animals have developed a unique relationship and have joined forces as they have one common need: clean water. Groups of villagers can be seen at different swamps and dirty wells, with animals queuing for water in bushes not far from the village.

Some of the wells are now dry and some are so dirty that it does not need a trained medical doctor to determine if whether the water is safe for human consumption or not, but villagers are forced to use it as a last resort. The water is muddy brown and slimy with green algae floating on it. Animals use it for consumption while some people are doing their washing and others are taking it home for household use.

Villagers have now threatened to withdraw their votes in the forthcoming elections if nothing is done to address their plight. “We are sick and tired of this hide and seek game played by officials from government who always make unfulfilled promises, “said the local traditional leader, Chief Maboxa Hlabangwane.

Hlabangwane said there had not been a single drop of water for the past three months, which had made the lives of the locals very miserable. “We do not know what to do. We have been to all the relevant authorities seeking assistance, but in all instances we only managed to get unfulfilled promises,“ he said.

He said his community had been renewing their membership of the ruling party in numbers, but he was no longer sure if they would go to the polls as they felt betrayed by the government they had put into power. “When we voted, these people promised us heaven and earth. We have always thought water would be a priority as there is no life without water but water has become the scarcest resource in our area. What wrong have we done to deserve this plight in this land? We know that there is a shortage of water, but other communities are getting alternative sources of water while we do not have any drop,” he said.

He is also worried that there are boreholes in the village that have not been operating, some because of minor technical faults that could be fixed in a day. “We are tired of being neglected. We are now appealing to the president to come and see our conditions here. There is a lot of unemployment and poverty, with no services at all and we just feel that we are not regarded as residents of this country."

Ms Nkhensani Mabasa, a resident in the village, said they had to leave their homes at two in the morning to use a tap that still serves the big community. “Our lives are at stake. We travel in the dark and we leave our properties at the mercy of criminals who know that we will be queuing for water. We sometimes come back without water, and others are fighting for a chance to get some water. The government should resolve this as a matter of urgency,” she said.

Mr Matodzi Ralushai, Vhembe District municipal spokesperson, confirmed the dire shortage in the district. “Because of the persistent drought, our municipality and other parts of the country have been hit hard by the shortage of water. As government, we are not folding our arms doing nothing to address the plight of these people. We have some interventions in place to see to it that people have drinking water,” he said.

He said the municipality had commissioned contractors to put boreholes all over the municipality in places where there is an acute shortage of water and they are also using tankers to supply water to areas that are affected. “We have put the supplying of clean water to our people as a priority and we just pray that rain comes in time to save us from this catastrophe,” he said.

He confirmed that the nearby Nandoni Dam is full, but because of some technical challenges which are receiving attention, it will only be able to dispense water to the communities in the near future. Meanwhile, the Department of Water Affairs has commissioned a new contractor to replace the substandard pipes that are holding the communities at ransom from clean drinking water.

Vhembe´s executive mayor, Cllr Falaza Mdaka, said the dam would only be able to give out water in 2011 or latest by 2012.