The African National Congress in Gauteng notes the continued deterioration in water supply across parts of Johannesburg and the decline in reservoir levels reported this week.

We accept responsibility. Where we govern, the condition of the pipe is our record. Losses in excess of a third of supply cannot be explained away by the age of the network alone; they reflect years in which maintenance budgets were the easiest line to cut and the last line to be missed.

The movement in Gauteng therefore commits to a maintenance-first approach in the metros we contest: ring-fenced maintenance budgets that may not be raided for other purposes, published leak-repair turnaround times, and quarterly public reporting of non-revenue water by ward.

We further call on residents who are able to pay for services to do so. Every household that disconnects from the municipal system in favour of a private borehole weakens the utility's ability to repair the network for the household that has no alternative.

We reject the argument, now common in the campaign, that decline in our metros is irreversible. It is not. It is a consequence of choices, and choices can be made differently.

Issued by the Provincial Communications Sub-committee, African National Congress, Gauteng Province.