By Puisano news Reporter
Growing public concerns over the ongoing sewage pollution of the Vaal River, including a formal complaint to the Department of Water and Sanitation, as well as a criminal court case has forced the municipality of Metsimaholo, and the Department of Water and Sanitation from both Free State and Gauteng provinces into urgent oversight mission, on the 29th October 2025.
The oversight was led by the Department of Water and Sanitation. The municipality has admitted in its communication that the high-level intervention was prompted by a formal complaint lodged by Ms. Rosemary Anderson, Chairperson of the Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa (FEDHASA), who raised alarm over the deteriorating state of the Vaal River due to continuous sewage spillages from Metsimaholo’s failing infrastructure.
“Her complaint reached the office of the Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation, Honourable Sello Seitlholo, who had personally visited Metsimaholo on 31 July 2025 to assess the situation and demand urgent corrective action from the municipality” said the municipality.
On the 9th August 2025, the Democratic Alliance through its constituency head Dr Igor Scheurkogel laid formal criminal charges against the municipality at the Sasolburg Police Station on the same ongoing crisis.
“As custodian of South Africa’s water resources, the Department of Water and Sanitation has a constitutional mandate to protect, preserve, and manage water resources for present and future generations. This oversight visit was therefore aimed at ensuring that proper measures are implemented by the municipality to stop the pollution and restore the integrity of the Vaal River system” said the municipality.
The municipality said the Department stressed that immediate interventions were necessary to prevent further contamination and that continuous monitoring would be enforced, the delegation embarked on site inspection of several critical wastewater infrastructure points within the municipality.
