Klerksdorp Record, Klerksdorp - The Indian Shopping Centre has been without water for more than two weeks.
Shoppers and shop owners have contacted Klerksdorp Record anonymously to complain about the situation as the Centre has food outlets that need water and those who work and shop there has to go to the nearby Terminus to use the toilet - at a fee.
A fire also broke out at the Centre on September 30, and there was no water in the complex, luckily the damage was minimal.
In its enquiries, Klerksdorp Record found out that the Centre has a communal water account but every store has its own electrical account. A previous member of the body corporate who wants to stay anonymous, said the water account has not been paid in more than a year and was cut off by the municipality.
According to him, shop owners have been warned about this possibility many times in the past.
DA councillor Johannes le Grange was stunned when Klerksdorp Record contacted him for comment. He said the municipality has a 30 day policy and it is unacceptable to think the Centre is in arrears for more than a year.
Klerksdorp Record contacted some of the well-known shop owners and the answers were mixed. Western Bazaars operates separately from the Centre and has water.
They told Klerksdorp Record this problem does not concern them.
Kara Bazaars forms part of the communal water account and has to get water from where they can (most likely from their neighbour, Western Bazaars).
One of the staff members of Kara Bazaars blamed the problem of non-payment on shop owners and said this situation is intolerable.
They couldn’t disclose how much is outstanding on the water bill, but said it must run into hundreds of thousands of Rand.
There may be running water very soon as the body corporate called an urgent meeting with shop owners to discuss the state of affairs.
This meeting was scheduled for Wednesday October 4.
