The DA called upon MMC for Environmental Resource and Waste Management Services alderman Khosi Mabaso to investigate why street-sweeping vehicles purchased by the municipality are not in use.
According to Ward 18 Clr Heather Hart, the state of Edenvale’s streets is a sorry sight as stones, weeds, rocks and sand are strewn across most road surfaces in the community.
“A clean-up job could be easily carried out by one of the City of Ekurhuleni’s (CoE) street-sweeping trucks designed to specifically carry out that very function.
“Instead, these trucks have sat idly in a garage in Kempton Park for well over two years for reasons the municipality has not made entirely clear.”
Hart said when requests are made to the CoE to use the street-sweeping vehicles to clean the streets of Edenvale, only excuses are provided.
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She said these range from the trucks needing maintenance to the unavailability of qualified operators and, more recently, the brushes need to be replaced.
“The requests to improve the streets of Edenvale are continuously being blocked,” said Hart. She explained numerous questions were posed in the past and in 2020 a motion was put forward, calling for the trucks to be used in the Edenvale CBD as a pilot programme during daytime hours with a plan to roll it out in other areas across the metro.
“Sadly, this was ultimately dismissed by the ANC coalition-led council because blowers could clean the verges,” said Hart.
“Edenvale residents are being deprived of services that the city has at its disposal.” Hart highlighted that the CoE purchased the four trucks in 2016 at an accumulated cost of R11-million.
“Five years down the line the trucks have been left to gather dust and deteriorate in Kempton Park and other unknown localities with no viable explanation from the CoE.”
Through the MMC’s investigation, the DA hopes to learn where the trucks are, what condition they are in, and why they are not being used on the City’s roads.
“It is unacceptable that such an investment has been neglected by CoE and is a clear example of wasteful expenditure.”
A request for comment was sent to the CoE on March 3, requesting comment by March 5 at 2pm. This is a developing story and comment will be added from the City of Ekurhuleni as soon as it is received.
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