Africa-Press – South-Africa. ActionSA’s High Court case against the eThekwini metro and various government departments over the ongoing sewage crisis, got off to a rocky start on Monday, with the case being postponed for an entire month.
ActionSA approached the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Durban to compel the government to attend to the sewage crisis.
The tourism minister, cooperative governance and traditional affairs minister, cooperative governance and traditional affairs MEC and the municipality opted for a process of mediation, with the government serving a notice on ActionSA for the request.
This after the government failed to file answering affidavits in the case.
ActionSA head of strategic litigation advocate Gillian Benson said the party did not have faith in the mediation process.
“We are not confident that the process will be of any use. I think the time for talking has ended prior to us issuing the papers.
Should the various government departments again fail to file answering affidavits, she said ActionSA would apply for a preferential date, so the case could be heard.
“We are trying to escalate this; we have been given leave by the court to ask for a preferential date should they again fail to file papers and disregard the rules of court.
“We are hoping that either of those negotiations are conducted in good faith and bonafide, alternatively we will try to get this matter to court as soon as possible.”
Attending court proceedings were ActionSA KZN leader Zwakele Mncwango and Abantu Batho Congress (ABC) leader Philani Mavundla.
Mavundla, the former deputy mayor and chairperson of the human settlements and infrastructure committee in eThekwini is a friend of the court.
He said he believed his previous experience in the key position at the municipality would help the court understand the errors made by various departments and the City in failing to curb the crisis.
Benson added Mavundla and ABC joining ActionSA in its court battle would strengthen their prospects of victory.
“We welcome any other party willing to do so, so that the situation with sewage in eThekwini can finally be dealt with.
“The residents have dealt with the situation for long enough, and the citizens here, the tourism sector here as well as the environment.”
Durban has been plunged into a catastrophic sewage crisis after already poorly maintained sewage infrastructure was damaged during the April 2022 flooding.
The KwaZulu-Natal economic development, tourism and environmental affairs department filed papers with the court in response to ActionSA, saying the municipality failed to respond sufficiently to compliance notices and directives for environmental issues going back to at least 2020.
In an affidavit, Bonginkosi Dlamini – the department’s acting chief director and director of compliance, monitoring and enforcement – made it clear the department had fulfilled its mandate and addressed eThekwini’s “non-compliance with legislation and imposed sanctions for such non-compliance”.
Dlamini gave a scathing account of the eThekwini metro’s failures in maintaining environmental safety.
“eThekwini has failed to discharge its duty of care in terms of the relevant legislation.”
Since the April 2022 floods, the department had issued various compliance notices and directives to the municipality, Dlamini said, but “the [eThekwini metro] failed to comply with these”.
He added the department had various meetings, site inspections and other engagements with eThekwini to ensure compliance with legislation.
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