This was all made possible thanks to the newly elected ward councillor, Thulani Simelane of Ward 74.
“Four houses along Mokhitli and Mogafe streets had reeds growing inside their yards.
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“And for years these families had been asking for help, but since the problem was inside their yards, not much was being done to help as they were told to deal with the matter on their own.
“Worried about the problem, when I got into office, I asked for help from the Department of Environmental Affairs, Clean City Brigade and the Community Work Programme team, so we could clean these yards,” he said.
Simelane added that since there was also fear that there could be snakes among the reeds, the Department of Environmental Affairs was again asked to visit the homes to check for snakes, but they found none.
The Department of Parks and Recreation was requested provide a chemical that will help to permanently kill the reeds, ensuring they don’t grow again.
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One of the residents who had faced this problem for years is Gladys Sesi Ntshingwa (58) from Mogafe, who said the reeds had been there since before she was born.
“We were told by our parents that the person who had owned the land previously planted the reeds so that people coming from far could see his house when they came to visit.
“So we have been stuck with it for decades as it is the first time that people have come to assist.
“As there was not much we could do, all we did in the past was pour oil or try cutting the reeds as they were even growing on roofs, close to windows and along the fence,” she said.
The families saw the seriousness of the problem and began worrying when someone from the community recently informed them that they had seen a snake.
Ntshingwa thanked the councillor and the community for helping them.
“We are very happy and grateful to have received help,” she said.
