The Grinch who stole Kimberley’s water

By Monty Quill

STEP aside, Grinch. You’ve been outdone. This year, Sol Plaatje Municipality has snatched your crown as the ultimate purveyor of festive despair. In a season when joy and goodwill should flow as abundantly as holiday spirit, Kimberley’s residents are left high and dry - literally. Forget roast beast and Who-hash; this Grinch has shut off the taps and left us parched.

Let’s rewind to the fleeting glimmer of hope that teased us on Sunday. Daytime water restrictions might be lifted, they said. Oh, the audacity to dream of green gardens, sparkling cars, and the sweet relief of a dip in a swimming pool during this unrelenting heat. But as Kimberley knows all too well, hope is as ephemeral as the water in our reservoirs. Monday’s municipal update landed like a lump of coal, smugly announcing, “We are still not able to lift the water supply interruptions.”

Bah, humbug.

The excuses are as tired as a threadbare Christmas vest: low reservoir levels, high demand, and the ever-convenient scapegoat, the Riverton Water Treatment Plant refurbishments. For years, we’ve been serenaded with the same monotonous tune, now remixed into a festive dirge. Sure, Reservoir 102 is at 81% and Reservoir 91 at a pitiful 50%, but what do those numbers mean for the average family trying to scrape together a semblance of normalcy? They don’t explain how we’re supposed to cook a Christmas meal, wash clothes, or endure 40-degree heat without collapsing from dehydration.

And then, the pièce de résistance: the dual blow of daytime (12 noon to 5pm) and nightly (9pm to 4am) water interruptions. While other towns revel in holiday lights and festive cheer, Kimberley residents fumble in the dark with buckets and basins. Merry Christmas, indeed.

Adding insult to injury, the municipality wraps these updates in a mockery of seasonal cheer. “Season’s Greetings,” they chirp at the end of every dreary notice, as though a cheery sign-off could conceal the fact that they’ve sabotaged the season. It’s the bureaucratic equivalent of being handed a candy cane after your house has burned down.

Of course, the usual refrain follows: residents are urged to “conserve water” and show “understanding and co-operation”. Let’s be clear: Kimberley’s residents have already done their part. Our gardens are dead, our pools are empty, and our dishes are piling up in the sink. Meanwhile, the Riverton refurbishments drag on like a holiday visit from the in-laws. Where’s the transparency? Where’s the accountability?

So, what now? Do we accept our fate as the forgotten Who-ville of South Africa, or do we demand action? Kimberley deserves better than platitudes and recycled excuses. It’s time for Sol Plaatje Municipality to stop playing the Grinch and start acting like the public servants they’re meant to be.

This Christmas, as we gather around our dry taps and sweltering homes, let’s hope for a redemption arc. After all, even the Grinch managed to grow a heart. Until then, Sol Plaatje Municipality will remain the seasonal saboteur who stole Kimberley’s water - one dry, infuriating drop at a time.

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