Sort out this matter once and for all
Ernest Waner writes by email: With reference to the Plastic City and the letters in your October 25 edition from Ferdinand Gouws, Lorraine Nel, Besorgde Inwoner Brenthurst, Hercules Coetzee, William Douglas and Dummond Doig, plus many more letters since the start of this problem at the entrance to Brakpan from Benoni.
The political responsibility lies with the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Council, headed by the mayor, Clr Gungubele, the Mayoral committee of 10, particularly Health and Social development MMC Twala-Maluleke and Environmental Development MMC Tilly Mabena and finally the DA ward councillor Veronica Dyson, who should be doing something to sort out the matter.
All are paid by the council and appointed to deal with issues like this.
The municipal manager, Khaya Ngema, acting on behalf of the municipality, and, finally, the Customer Care Centre in Brakpan, through their CEO, is responsible to make sure health and safety and municipal by-laws are adhered to, which obviously is not being done.
As suggested by one of the writers, either the site must be secured in its entirety day and night with the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department’s assistance, or an arrangement must be made with the persons collecting the trash, who are making an honest, but measly living, collecting and selling from the dump.
A few years ago, the council called on the Red Ants to remove them.
Because no final settlement to the problem was forthcoming, they were back after three weeks, with the situation now worse than ever.
From my observation, it seems that the main reason they are staying and working on the one side is that they have a supply of water for drinking and for living there.
A possible solution may be to move them to another location, across the road, if water is available on the other side of the dump, and to let them carry on working the way they are, except that they be limited to that area and be banned from burning the plastic, as it causes a terrible smell and pollution throughout the town.
It is up to those responsible parties — the mayor, the council, municipal manager, the CCC of Brakpan and Veronica Dyson — to see whether an arrangement can be made.
That is their job and is what they get paid for.
In fact, the average salary of the mayor, the governing committee and councillors working from the budget allocation and dividing it by 202 persons averages approximately R40 000 per month all in.
Working on the exact same formula and on the estimated figure of a 17 000 council work force (which fluctuates all the time), the average salary of an Ekurhuleni council employee is approximately R24 000 per month across the board all in.
Obviously, in both categories, there are those who earn more and those who earn less, depending on their employment circumstances.
They all received a seven per cent increase in the last year.
We, as ordinary citizens, pay our rates and taxes.
We live in Ekurhuleni and demand that those in authority do their jobs, not sidestep issues, and sort out the matter once and for all.
If you are unable to do your job, move on and let others more qualified take over from you.
Editor’s note: Comment is awaited from the metro and Democratic Alliance.
