Pothole repairs on hold

RESIDENTS of Evaton West Extension 7, Vereeniging, say they halted the pothole repair of a massive pothole on Tuesday due to their councillor and the Emfuleni Municipality being aloof to their pleas for many years about the deteriorating road.

A massive pothole in Evaton West sent shock waves across social media after children and a few adults were captured on social media swimming in it at the weekend.

Resident Mbuso Mabaso said that as a community they are well aware that the biggest problem is water from faulty pipes beneath the roads.

“We are well aware that water is what is creating this damage. It's not even one pothole. There are many potholes around the area. We've been pleading with the councillor to do something about this road for a very long time,” Mabaso said.

He said the councillor has been telling them about procedural matters that have to be fulfilled for years now.

“What makes it worse is that there is a crèche right next to the infamous hole being discussed in the media. Imagine what would happen if a vehicle trying to get away from the hole hit a child?” he asked.

Another resident and member of the area’s youth committee Simphiwe Khambule said he believed that the

municipal workers arriving at the pothole on Tuesday was a publicity stunt because of all the media attention the matter was receiving.

Khambule said the stopping of the municipal work escalated after the councillor was confronted for being absent for almost a decade.

“She said it was part of her job to attend to such matters. When we asked her why she hadn't been coming to the area, she began having arguments, stating that we were illiterate and weren't on the same levels of understanding,” he said.

He said that all the community wanted was to have an entirely new road with all the required road infrastructure such as drainage systems and working sewer pipes and not shortterm solutions such as patching.

“When it rains this road gets filled up with water and it's not a small amount of water, it's like you are in a river when you're here,” he said.

Acting Emfuleni Municipality’s spokesperson Makhosonke Sangweni said those who halted the municipal work were not taking into consideration the interests of the public and are therefore taking part in acts of criminality.

Sangweni said the disruption of services, regardless of the time they arrive, and stopping the government from working was criminal.

He said he hoped the Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport has been in touch with law enforcement officials and that they will attend to the matter.

“The road will be fixed, we can't be stopped by people who continue to disrupt our work as the municipality,” he said.

Sangweni added that it may be true that residents have been reporting the pothole to the municipality, but he reminded the communitymembers that in order to provide for the services there needs to be money.

“These community members who are complaining are people who don't want to play their civic role and pay for services. Even those who believe they are poor aren't taking the opportunity of registering as indigent so that they can get free basic services,” said Sangweni.

This results in the municipality’s hands being tied, he said, as they cannot force people to pay and at the same time provide proper services. “We want to continue to provide services but community members need to play their role in making sure they meet the municipality

half way,” he said.