Flooding in Divided City of Cape Town

GOOD Statement by Siyabulela Mamkeli, GOOD City of Cape Town Councillor:

The recent flooding across Cape Town has once again exposed systemic issues in the City’s infrastructure maintenance, particularly the stormwater drainage network. While heavy rainfall affects all areas, its consequences are disproportionately severe in townships, informal settlements, and the Cape Flats, where infrastructure is less robust and housing is more vulnerable.

In many of these communities, residents face the reality of rain entering their homes due to poor roof conditions and water backing up from blocked drains. This is directly linked to the City’s failure to maintain its stormwater systems. Basic preventative measures, such as clearing stormwater drains, are not being carried out with the frequency or urgency required.

The City’s stormwater drainage is managed by the Roads Infrastructure Management Department, under the Urban Mobility Directorate. This department is responsible for cleaning catch pits and pipes, and for monitoring flood-prone areas. However, service delivery in marginalised communities continues to fall short. The problem runs deeper than blocked street drains, it lies in underground pipes clogged with sand and debris, largely due to gullies not being regularly cleaned and sand being washed into the system with each rainfall.

While the City often blames residents for covering manholes, it fails to acknowledge its own backlog in replacing missing or damaged covers, further endangering public safety. Residents place large objects over and around these manholes as a preventative measure.

In addition, the Catchment, Stormwater and River Management (CSRM) branch, under the Water and Sanitation Directorate, is responsible for cleaning canals, rivers, and retention ponds. Yet CSRM reportedly exhausted its budget in the third quarter of the last financial year, leaving Cape Town unprepared for winter, further exacerbating the issue. Funds for the new financial year only became available this month. This is not just a budgeting oversight, it reflects poor planning and weak risk management.

Cape Town residents continue to pay high property tariffs and service charges. However, these resources are not being translated into consistent, equitable, and reliable service delivery across the metro.

The GOOD Party calls on the DA-led City of Cape Town to urgently address the operational and budgetary inefficiencies undermining its ability to respond to predictable seasonal challenges. Infrastructure maintenance, particularly stormwater systems, must be prioritised.

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