Residents threaten to boycott elections due to lack of service delivery

Enoch Mgijima local municipality residents are threatening to boycott the May 29 election because of refuse collection problems, bad roads, overflowing sewers and, in the case of Komani, water outages lasting from several hours to months.

Residents of Mlungisi and Ezibeleni in Komani are now fed up.

Komani residents have had to rely on tankers for some time, but have made shocking discoveries in the water, including a condom, panties and used nappies, prompting outrage..

To add to their woes, potholed roads in Ezibeleni become “dams and swimming pools” when it rains.

“If the authorities don’t provide the basic services we are demanding, such as water, electricity and road upgrades, we will have no choice but to prevent the IEC staff from entering our area,” community leader Xolani  Ngxatu said.

Authorities reportedly sent a grader only after they became aware that the Dispatch was on its way to highlight the communities’ plight.

The Dispatch team found the grader hard at work at   6pm on Friday, but it did not look like it would make a huge difference as the roads need proper upgrades.

Residents blamed the municipality for failing to upgrade their gravel roads and cried foul over the “nightmarish” drainage system.

“Taxi operators refuse to take us home when it’s raining because they don’t want to damage their vehicles,”  Ngxatu said.

Another bone of contention is electricity load reduction that leaves parts of Ezibeleni in the dark for hours, all except Zone 1.

Though Eskom has suspended load-shedding, constant blackouts continue to torment the residents of Komani.

“The municipality laid the blame on old infrastructure,” Ngxatu said, “but that can’t be an excuse because they should have dealt with the problem head-on.

“Residents are agitated because they receive distorted information from various municipal offices when they seek help.”

In Mlungisi, there are piles of uncollected garbage in almost every corner of the township.

Residents said the municipality, which was listed among the most dysfunctional in the country at some point, was failing them.

The planned Bells Road upgrade had turned into a nightmare as the road had been closed for several months.

Komani Protest Action (KPA) official Xola Njokweni said the municipality had only delivered material but the work had not yet started.

“The closure of Bells Road contributes to traffic congestion.”

Though rehabilitation of various roads in Mlungisi had started, it was not completed. 

“They’ve paved some roads, but not others.”

Local businesspeople have had to step in to assist the municipality with the problems of sewage and uncollected refuse.

Speaking on behalf of the business community, Clarisse Hughes, who represents Non-Soso Construction and Riders Towing, said they asked some of their truck drivers and staff to bring tow trucks and TLBs to assist with the loading of rubbish.

During the 2023 floods that claimed lives in the Komani area, Hughes said the business community assisted with unblocking the drainage system.

“To do it in a safe manner and not put the locals at risk, we had to get a group of engineers to assist us with the logistics.

“We are also assisting in rehabilitating our local sewerage plant. We are delighted to provide these services.”

Nomzamo residents in Mlungisi want the municipality to redirect a sewerage system, which is overflowing and poses a health hazard.

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