Service delivery protests cause major disruptions

At the time of going to print on Monday, August 22, a protest that started last week on the R71 road to Phalaborwa by a group from Mashishimale, was still ongoing. “We want the mayor (of Ba-Phalaborwa) to come and help solve the problems in our community. The mayor told us to work through our sub-structures, which we did.

We voted on which of our concerns need to be addressed and submitted it to the royal family,” one concerned community member said. “Ba-Phalaborwa Community Forum (BCF) assisted us and they all went to the mayor’s office. Apparently, there was a fight so we do not know where our concerns ended up. “We have been here for a month and a half, without anything happening, they have not even recognised our presence.

Also read: Protesters and Eskom reach agreement on load reduction

“We want the mayor to know that we are tired of sitting and doing nothing, we are not afraid of being arrested. He said that they hardly have electricity. “Water is a huge problem. Everyone in Phalaborwa knows what our problems are.” He said that they will continue to block the road until the mayor, Meriam Malatji addresses them. The spokesperson of the Ba-Phalaborwa Municipality, Jonas Maheso, told the Herald on Monday that the mayor Malatji is out of town until August 29. He said she will only be able to address the protestors on her return.

Maheso confirmed that the reasons for the protests are problems within the BCF, water, and electricity. He said that the road to Giyani has been opened, but that the road to Tzaneen was still closed. The Mopani District Municipality’s (MDM) spokesperson, Odas Ngobeni, told the Herald that the protestors on the R71 road have nothing to do with water. MDM is the water authority in the district. Last week, similar protests erupted in the Greater Tzaneen area which mostly had to do with the lack of water. These protests have since been resolved as the water issue was temporarily addressed by the MDM.