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The matter will be heard in the Durban High Court on Thursday, 15 October 2026. 

The DA has filed papers opposing the court application brought by outgoing eThekwini Mayor Cyril Xaba, City Manager Musa Mbhele and senior municipal official Ednick Msweli.

The DA will defend the rights of all people to hold the City’s most senior political and administrative leaders accountable for eThekwini’s water crisis.

While the applicants fight a billboard in Court, approximately 21 billion litres of water are reportedly lost every month and residents of eThekwini remain dependent on water tankers.

We are ready to defend our position when the matter is heard in the Durban High Court on Thursday morning.

Our position is clear: the Mayor, City Manager and senior official responsible for Water and Sanitation occupy the most powerful positions of political and administrative accountability in eThekwini.

The DA will fight this tooth and nail.

The billboard, which was removed without DA approval, is a call to action.

It calls upon those with the power to do so, which includes the people of eThekwini, to act to stop the water tanker mafia and get water back into eThekwini’s taps.

eThekwini reportedly has approximately 13,000 active water leaks, while an estimated 21 billion litres of treated water are lost or remain unaccounted for every month. That amounts to approximately 700 million litres every day.

While this water is being lost, communities endure dry taps, prolonged interruptions and queues for tankers.

Instead of explaining how this crisis was allowed to reach such proportions, the City’s most senior leaders have chosen to take the DA to court over a billboard.

The real question is not why the DA placed their faces on the billboard. The real question is why, under their leadership, one of South Africa’s largest cities has been left with failing water infrastructure and communities increasingly dependent on tankers for a basic service.

Public officials cannot enjoy the authority of high office while attempting to escape public accountability for the performance of the institutions they lead.

The DA will defend robust political expression and our right to demand answers on behalf of eThekwini residents.

We will not be intimidated or distracted from the central issue: families need clean, reliable water in their taps, not permanent dependence on expensive and irregular tanker deliveries.

We look forward to presenting our case in court on Thursday.

On 4 November, residents can hold the outgoing administration truly accountable by voting them out and can choose a DA-led government with a credible plan to stop the chaos, repair the water network, reduce losses and restore reliable services.

Stop the water tanker mafia. Vote DA for water in your taps.

Issued by DA eThekwini mayoral candidate Haniff Hoosen