In reaction to the letter written by Neil Diamond, as published in the Advertiser of April 18, regarding Ekurhuleni being a better place to live: I cannot agree in any way.
I did not attend the Mayor’s State of the City address, nor did I read any other comments on the state of the address, therefore I do not really know of all the wonderful “stories” that have been happening in Boksburg since 1994.
Maybe, it is because I see what I see, despite wearing glasses.
It appears, when a person becomes an ANC councillor, they see only what they see and believe themselves, no matter what else happens.
We call it the Ostrich Tactics: shout your songs of praise and, thereafter, bury your head in the sand in order not to see anything else.
As a resident and taxpayer in Boksburg since 1976, I can tell you of a number of things that were far better in 1994.
In 1994 my children roamed the streets on their bicycles and we even played cricket and tennis in the street without fear of being run over or being attacked.
We lived in Freeway Park without security fences around our properties (today we have to live in security complexes with the highest security measures).
We could take our children to the Boksburg Lake to play and feed the ducks. Today we cannot take our grandchildren to any open public park (except the Bokkie Park, in Cinderella).
The Boksburg Lake must be the worst disgrace of the most beautiful area in Boksburg. It smells like the biggest sewerage works in town.
Please Mr Diamond, do yourself a favour and take a stroll out there, it is within walking distance from your municipal offices.
Maybe you do not know, but a couple of years ago there were 112 informal settlements (squatter camps) in Ekurhuleni.
Goodness knows how many there are today ( I know of at least one extra white squatter camp close to the centre of Boksburg town).
The roads in the Chris Hani informal settlement in Reiger Park have not been scraped since 1994. Residents are filling the potholes and dongas after the rains, with their household refuse and soil, in order to make the road passable or drivable.
I can carry on and fill the Advertiser with things that are wrong in Boksburg, let alone in the rest of Ekurhuleni. They are even worse in the townships in and around Ekurhuleni.
I haven’t even started with all the potholes in town, never mind the traffic lights and street lights not working.
The biggest progress and upliftment of Ekurhuleni — and Boksburg for that matter — comes from private big businesses and small companies and entrepreneurs.
I take note of the following comments: “showcase of improved services in healthcare and emergencies” and “to bridge the gap on access by all communities to the local public service and improved service delivery”.
As mentioned above, we see only what affects us as residents and it does not tell a good story.
I am sorry I do not share your optimism and the story to “create a better life for all”.
