The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng says a promised sinkhole task team that was supposed to be established by the end of June this year remains a dream.

The party’s provincial spokesperson for roads and transport, Nicole Van Dyk, says the delay is concerning as sinkholes continue to emerge across the province, putting residents and motorists at risk.

Van Dyk says Gauteng is vulnerable to sinkholes because it is made up of 35% dolomite, making the land in the area “a disaster waiting to happen.”

She says the risk of sinkholes appearing is worsened by water infrastructure that must be fixed.

“A lot of these sinkholes we’ve seen are caused by ongoing unattended leaks from the various metros. There are now additional threats of zama zamas causing sinkholes. It is not a new problem to the province and as such, we were assured that the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport will be setting up a unit to start assisting with sinkholes, at the very least, getting a report drafted in a much more timeous fashion. This, to date, has not appeared to happen.”

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