eThekwini Region is knee-deep in unfortunate circumstances where service delivery crises is concerned. PR councillor for the Democratic Alliance (DA) Sithembiso Ngema led residents gathered at Tomango Road, Merebank and picketed near the spot where a portion of the road had been dug up and left unrepaired. Ngema told journalists on the scene that the Water and the eThekwini Roads and Stormwater Departments were the main contributors of incomplete work in several areas. Ngema blamed the lack of communication between municipal departments as the major reason why trenches are left unprepared for weeks in many areas in the south of the city.
Merebank residents Vasie Moodley, Collen Pillay and Ringo Naidoo hold a picket demonstration on Tomango Road. Photo: Andile Sithole A member of the Merebank Residents and Ratepayers Association, Lynette Chetty, said they monitor all service delivery issues in the area. “A trench on this road has been left open for over three weeks. This road is used daily by schoolchildren, and during peak traffic times in the morning and afternoon, it has become dangerous and inconvenient for them to cross while vehicles try to navigate around the trench. “In response, we held a placard demonstration to send a clear message to the eThekwini Municipality — we are not satisfied with the level of service we are receiving. It seems they only began addressing the issue because of the pressure we applied. Even now, I don’t believe the repair work is being done properly.”
Spokesperson for eThekwini Municipality Gugu Sisilana said the municipality understands the frustration of the community and business regarding the delay in these repairs.
The Municipality needs to setup a help line to residents across eThekwini region for them to air their complaints. The fact that three weeks have elapsed since the road trench was left unrepaired and that school children were placed at risk is a cause for much concern. Neighbourhood Groups like the Merebank Residents and Ratepayers Association should call for a phone help line to be set up between the offices of City Hall and neighbourhood groups. Miscommunication at local government level that puts the lives of children at risk should be taken into account. Mayor Cyril Xaba needs to face pressure for failing to improve service delivery. Picketing by the open trench in Merebank will not be enough. Ngema and the Merebank Residents and Ratepayers Association should take the matter of a municipal help line to the corridors of local power and call for better communication between the mayor’s office and residents.
These repairs should come underway now that the municipality is paying attention but in future better communication between departments and the set up of a help line.
It’s based on more than 2,000 complaints lodged over the financial year. eThekwini topped the list of municipalities being flagged for human rights violations. The commission revealed the KZN office received 395 complaints, with 35 directed at eThekwini Municipality. Most complaints are around water and sanitation service failures. “ The vast majority of people that are being affected are the indigent people in the suburbs and in the township,” says Asad Gaffar, who is the chairperson of the eThekwini Ratepayers Protest Movement. “Old grandmothers have to walk long distances to go and collect water from a water tanker. And in some instances, the tankers are infrequent, so there’s no piped water into these communities. “They still have to walk distances to carry a 25-liter and then carry it all the way back to their home.” He believes the city needs to be held accountable.
A serious problem with service delivery is the lack of responsibility in the leadership of eThekwini Municipality. The municipality still faces a chronic lack of communication between its departments as well as residents and this has led to dilapidated infrastructure as well as hazardous ordeals for residents as stated previously. The fact that the eThekwini region is at the top of a list of municipal cities and towns being flagged for human rights violations is indeed worrying. The African National Congress (ANC) has held the lion’s share of Durban Metro’s governance portfolios due to having the majority of seats in the municipal counsel. This has been for the entirety of thirty-one years of democracy. It may be time for a change in leadership. Both eThekwini and the rest of the country need to look to ahead to determine what kind of future they want.
The school children and the elderly deserve better in terms of not having to face hazards and basic decency. The situation in Merebank needs be monitored by civil society as a whole.
Article written by:
Yacoob Cassim
Journalist at Radio Al Ansaar
