[0:00]we're going to go to South Africa now where water shortages are meaning misery for millions. But there's a darker side to the issue, the so-called water mafia. Criminal gangs have infiltrated the water industry. The BBC's Africa correspondent Mani Jones sent this report from Johannesburg.
[0:18]After years of intermittent water shortages, these protesters in Johannesburg say they're fed up. Some have had no running water for over a month. And they're not the only ones. 100 km north, things are even worse. This is what is happening in Hamman's Kraal. So, look at there's no water in this tab. For two months, there's no water. Look, look at this. Now, the the the school are the schools are opening. Kids they need to to bath each and every morning. A uniform need to be washed each and every day. Eric has water to wash with, but it's not drinkable. He says drinking water is provided by the local authority via tankers. It's meant to be free, but that's not always the case. Some drivers they sell us, they sell water. And then they say, uh, when you say you want water, they say, you must buy. We just give up, uh, we don't do nothing because of those criminals. Because everything here is money. When you have no money, you can't do nothing. Water shortages turn everyday actions into a grind. Just to wash one car, these car washes have to travel two kilometers. It's not just expensive for the municipality, it's time consuming. Campaigners say the lack of investment in water infrastructure is worsened by criminal activity. It creates fear because this is now your supply of water. So people won't tell you about the kind of other illegal things whether they want to charge people for water. They're afraid to come out and say the kind of things that are happening because then they won't get water. They fear as if the the mafia won't go to their streets anymore. We contacted the local authority multiple times to ask how they're tackling the issue. Last year, President Cyril Ramaphosa urged law enforcement and local governments to put an end to criminal gangs running water tankers. For residents here, that end can't come soon enough. Mani Jones, BBC News, Hammanskraal.
