KZN municipalities owe millions to Water Department
Some KZN municipalities owe the Water and Sanitation Department almost R300-million.
The revelation follows the news that municipal water debt is currently sitting at R10.7 billion.
Minister Nomvula Mokonyane has warned the country's 30 defaulting municipalities that they will use all their resources to recoup the money.
This includes asking Treasury to freeze its water budget to the municipalities.
ALSO READ: Umgeni Water extends water restrictions for municipalities
Some of them haven't paid for services for around five years. The department's Sputnik Ratau says municipalities in KZN owe them around R287 million.
"A part of what we have looked at is to engage within the inter-governmental relations act. We've also had legal processes that have been at the core of how we've tried to recover this money. We've had court summons and court judgements. We are still in court, and are disputing some of the issues that we have raised," he says.
For more on this and other developing stories, here's your latest Newswatch bulletin.