It is a criminal offence for those in charge of municipal management to allow untreated sewage to spew into our rivers and water systems. Yet this has been happening at many of eThekwini’s wastewater treatment plants, choking our rivers with hazardous E. coli, which ends up being deposited into the ocean and on to our beaches.

The impact of this appalling situation is devastating for tourism and business in the region. Yet the inaction and relative silence by local business chambers and tourism industry associations is glaring and worrying.

One would have expected every member of the Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa (Fedhasa) to be hopping mad by now, and placing significant pressure on city management to attend to the problem.

Sadly, business leadership is largely missing in action.

I say “largely” because, aside from the odd comment here and there, there is no meaningful action to demand accountability from those in authority within the eThekwini municipality.

This will lead to millions, if not billions of tourism rands lost to businesses and traders in the area, and, alas,  the waiters, cleaners, craft traders, car guards and other entry-level workers will feel the brunt of this sorry state of affairs.

Accountability

Holding the authorities to account for their serious dereliction of duty requires leadership and the collaboration of various business associations, to exercise the necessary moral courage and take meaningful action against the perpetrators.

When inquiring why Fedhasa has been relatively silent on the matter, one gets a picture of this important industry association becoming fragmented and left without a strong industry voice.

Some of the bigger hotel operators fail to perceive the need to be part of the body, while others who are members merely capitalise on discounted DStv package rates.

What ought to be a strong industry association that lobbies government on hospitality industry matters has become weakened by a lack of participation from hotel group senior executives, who seem to miss the point and purpose of an empowered industry body that should have the ability to challenge the authorities and champion the necessary causes that strengthen the sector.

Deafening silence

More astounding is the deafening silence from the Tourism Business Council of SA. This is the overarching tourism body — funded largely by various businesses within the tourism sector — that should be adding weight to the causes and concerns relating to poor government performance, bad decisions and driving broader interests of the tourism sector.

The eThekwini sewage problem impacts on a range of tourism-related industries, from car rental, airlines and B&Bs to tour operators and local traders.

Why are we not furious and demanding world-class service delivery from local and national authorities?

The time for industry bodies and associations to re-evaluate their purpose is now — and not only in the tourism sector.

Pandering to the interests and bowing to the bullying and pressures of government are no longer options this country can take.

Among other duties, industry associations should be structured to represent all segments within their industries (small to large); ensure healthy competition and inclusivity; drive change and healthy policy development and stand up to government’s abuse or lack of action that unnecessarily diminishes the industry sector.

Coordinated campaign

If the tourism and business chambers at both the local (eThekwini) and national levels are serious about addressing this dire situation, a coordinated campaign could go a long way towards addressing the situation.

It would need to start with the facts (gathering water quality data, which has largely been done for them by various water quality activists in the area), followed by engaging the authorities to obtain their commitment to rectify the situation. Next should be (in conjunction with or without the authorities) a thorough assessment of the extent of the repairs required at each of the wastewater treatment plants.

The above actions would lay the ground for further, tougher steps should the municipality evade its legal obligations to the residents and businesses of the area.

This would involve engagements with the receptive Green Scorpions (at a national level) to start taking legal action against errant municipal management.

In addition, the campaign should also obtain legal opinions from senior counsel to ultimately compel the municipality to do its job — failing which, the option of obtaining a court order to instruct the private sector to conduct the repairs and management of the infrastructure (as has been done in other municipalities), with the eThekwini municipality being compelled to cover the costs of the repairs and management thereof.

Whatever the outcomes of such a structured campaign, the chances of the numerous treatment plants being repaired are far greater than if business or local community associations do nothing — the consequences of that being eThekwini’s beaches will remain awash with E. coli for the foreseeable future.

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Holding the authorities to account doesn’t mean adopting an all-out, guns blazing approach. It means getting organised, setting up your task team and appointing a project manager, from where the engagements and even offering assistance to the authorities to do their work, can begin.

But it also means that when the authorities don’t take you or their job seriously, a tougher stance — including exploring legal options — must be undertaken.

In the absence of this necessary collaborative and morally courageous leadership, industry associations will remain weak talk-shops and business, along with civil society, will forever be bullied by politicians who abuse their positions of authority.

The result: millions of rands lost, declining investment, decaying infrastructure and thousands of jobs drying up every year.

The time for a bold stand by tourism industry associations and leadership is long overdue.

From an inbound tourism numbers perspective — aside from a weak currency that has helped to ease the situation — this country is punching well below its weight.

If industry leadership doesn’t stand up and do something, there might not, in a few years from now, be much of a country to do business in. DM