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The Deputy Minister in the Presidency responsible for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Seiso Mohai Seiso and Deputy Minister Steve Letsike attend a briefing session at OR Tambo District Municipality in Mthatha, Eastern Cape on August 20, 2025.
The Deputy Minister in the Presidency responsible for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Seiso Mohai, has expressed satisfaction with the progress made in addressing the flood disaster in Mthatha, Eastern Cape.
He and his team conducted an oversight visit in the area to assess the extent of the damage to infrastructure and basic services.
They visited one of the mass care centres, the Thornhill Water Treatment Works and Maydene Farm construction site.
Over 100 people were left dead by the floods, while over 1000 were left displaced.
Mohai says despite his satisfaction with the progress made in dealing with the matter, the situation at the centre is cause for concern.
He says, “Obviously, we will never wish anybody to stay in a community hall because that facility is not meant for people to sleep in it in the first place and very basic issues that affect the human dignity gets compromised easily, but we believe that they will soon be out of that condition, be in dignified units as progress is being made.”
Water infrastructure
The devastating floods caused huge damage to water infrastructure, leaving communities without water for over two weeks, but that has since been resolved.
Mohai says they will work with provincial and local leaders to ensure that the issues are prioritised.
He says, “We will be dealing with those matters of detail outside of the normal environment, also to engage even with entities or state entities like Eskom to look into areas where services were disconnected and services have got to be regularised the same way as we have visited the water plant.”
Mohai says, “We have seen how that infrastructure impacted in the supply of other communities, so those are priority areas that we are going to be dealing with and ensure that of course, also in the long term, the people’s lives are adjusted.”
Construction is underway at Maydene Farm, where the displaced victims of the floods will be temporarily sheltered.
The Province’s Human Settlement MEC Siphokazi Mani-Lusithi says she is also satisfied with the progress made.
Mani-Lusithi says, “We’re really encouraged by the progress and the speed in which the contractors are moving. We have given them a target that by Friday, we should have finished 100, we already have 25 in one day, so by Monday, we should be moving the first group of families into their homes.”
The Department aims to move all the displaced flood victims to the temporary structures by the end of September.
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