Kimberley - The Sol Plaatje Municipality on Monday came under attack from its councillors and community members who blamed it for violent service delivery protests in Club 2000.
Ward 31 councillor, Moses Nhlapo, said on Monday that it was the officials at the municipality who were to be blamed for the protest because they were not doing their part to fast-track service delivery to residents.
“As councillors at the municipality, we have always told the officials that their failure to provide our residents with basic services will lead to this (referring to service delivery protest).
“The issues raised by the protesting residents are valid. That is why I am supporting them and this action. The cause of all this is officials at the municipality that are not taking us serious and are not doing enough to service our people,” Nhlapo said.
He warned the officials at the municipality that if they did not improve the living conditions of the people in the area, more violent protests were on the cards.
“We must just be true to ourselves and acknowledge that the situation under which most of our people live is severe and that it has to be improved. This improvement will start with the officials at the municipality taking these concerns seriously and dealing with them head on,” Nhlapo added.
The councillor for Ward 17, Angela Amina Modise, told the protesting residents that their complaints, which included constantly blocked sewerage systems, electricity being cut off by the municipality and other such problems, could better be dealt with by the municipality and not herself as a councillor.
“We report these problems to the municipality and I am open to you. You can go to the municipality to scrutinise my reports there. I cannot do much if the officials delay in implementing issues,” Modise said.
Residents also warned the municipality and councillors that if their living conditions were not improved, Kimberley would see more violent protests.
“We will burn the city! We will resort to absolute anarchy because we have nothing to lose!
“What happened in Sasolburg will look like a picnic and police would be tempted to pull a Marikana on us because we will turn the city upside down! We are already living in a stinking horrible place! We have nothing to lose,” the residents said.
They also said that they would continue to lobby for more wards in the city to join the protest.
“We will make it impossible for the ANC to campaign for the 2014 general elections in Kimberley,” residents added.
The spokesman for the Sol Plaatje Municipality, Sello Matsie, said on Monday that the municipality would continue to work hard to deliver services.
“We will continue to engage with councillors in order to get to the bottom of the dissatisfaction in the community. We will also work hard to fast-track the delivery of services in our community.
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