On 18 December 2020, the North West High Court declared that the Kgetlengrivier Local Municipality was in breach of its constitutional obligations and that it had failed to supply potable water to the residents of Koster and Swartruggens. Further, the court found that its wastewater treatment works were mismanaged and in a state of disrepair.
In his interim order, Judge Festus Gura sentenced the municipal manager to 90 days imprisonment, suspended, and agreed to allow the residents’ association, Kgetlengrivier Concerned Citizens, to take control of the waterworks, paid for by local and provincial government. He gave the municipality until 1 March 2021 to demonstrate why this interim order should not be made final.