KAMAQHEKEZA – Nkomazi residents took to the streets in the wee hours of the morning on Tuesday to voice out their anger concerning the status of roads in the area and water shortages, among other things.
The area has been plagued by dust for a couple of years now after the tarred road was removed to be redone.
Residents are complaining that the alternative roads are not maintained and are now hazardous to their health.
“We are forever sick with flu and nobody seems to care, it gets worse with our children because they can’t even play outside,” said one Block C resident.
According to Block A residents, the alternative road has now disturbed their water system because heavy cars and buses have caused the pipe to burst and are not able to access clean water as a result.
“The aftermath of this whole thing just screams danger, we are sick because of the dust and now we cannot access water, we can’t even bath because once you step out of the house you will become dirty on the spot,” another resident narrated.
Taxi drivers in the area are complaining of the damages caused by the road to their taxis and claim that the maintenance is now becoming too much to bare.
“Driving opposite a bus is any taxi driver’s nightmare, the stones they step on are breaking our windows, and we now work to maintain our taxis, not to make a living.
“We can’t even claim the damages from anyone, it’s like one step forward and two steps back,” complained one taxi driver who did not wish to be named.
The community says although strikes in the past have gone unnoticed and yielded no positive results, they will continue to show their dissatisfaction by taking on the streets, which was evident on Tuesday morning.
“We have seen officials coming down here for the past five years, even Premier David Mabuza came down and made some promises, which have not been fulfilled to date, we are tired and we will continue seeking justice with regards to this road,” added another angry resident.
The commuters are alleging that the alternative road has been problematic and has caused a few accidents since its establishment, because it is too narrow for so many cars and buses.
“Just last week, we witnessed an accident on that road because it is too small, one has to park aside for another car to pass, it is time consuming and people get to work late because of this whole misunderstanding, we really feel we are not taken seriously and we want our road to be fixed as soon as possible, otherwise, we will continue striking and no one will go to work,” narrated another commuter.
Its high time our local government take into consideration human life coz 1 life lost is one too many… Especial the right to access free and clean water..
It is very dizturbing tht the state of our life r not taken care of,hence we talk of bng 20yrs in democracy,our living conditions seem to be going to the drain,our government s total failing us,for the past decade we stl cnt hv a proper tared road n water,we dnt demand much like other pple in other provinces whr government build them even toilets & houses,those 2things nje tus what we appeal for plz Enuf s Enuf,Anc always got majority votes here but fail us dismal,plenty essential that we lack off around mpumalanga