Cape Town - Residents from Plumstead are furious at the treatment of the elderly and pensioners at the community’s local council offices.
According to an eyewitness, a group of 100 residents was made to queue outside the municipality in a cold alley with no chairs to sit on nor any structures to shield them from the harsh weather.
Suzzane Vos, 74, said that after arriving at the offices around 8am, she saw long queues with mostly elderly people and immediately asked about the turn-around time to renew her licence, only to be told that she might have to wait up to six hours.
“I was taken aback by the number of elderly people I saw standing in line at the Plumstead municipal offices. They were braving the cold just to get assistance performing their civic duty. It was disheartening ... the elderly were clearly struggling against the conditions. The situation there was downright inhumane and I believe our elderly deserve better,” said Vos.
Plumstead councillor Elizabeth Brunnette said she has been approached by a few elderly residents for assistance regarding the situation.
“Unfortunately, there’s not much I can do. However, I escalated their complaints to the city,” said Brunette.
The City said that municipal offices prioritised the assistance for the elderly but for the past few weeks, they have been under pressure to clear a three-month backlog due to the pandemic and lockdown.
Deputy mayor Ian Neilson said: “There are 1.3 million registered vehicles in Cape Town. City officials have been processing double, if not triple, the number of transactions per month over the past few months, but the volumes are high due to the extraordinary and abnormal situation of a pandemic which has affected all aspects of society.
“While the City does give preference to elderly and infirm residents and pregnant women, we would appreciate customers and residents to work with us.
“We would also like to encourage our customers to make use of the various online and other account payment options.”
Cape Argus