‘Gatvol’ is an understatement…
There were also questions over what happens to the money that resident pay to the municipality in the form of rates and service charges.
On-going power outages and other service delivery issues prompted around 50 residents to last week converge on the AbaQulusi Municipality Technical Services building to demand answers.
The protest was sparked by a lengthy power outage on August 1.
Pressed for answers by the irate residents, Technical Director Nathi Mbongwa, said that he ‘might not have all the answers (to their questions) but is willing to listen to all the complaints and will return on a later stage with possible answers to the problems.’
Asked ‘who is your employer’, Mbongwe said ‘I don’t want to answer that literally but my job is to serve you guys, and if you feel that I am treating you like a child, that is not my intention’.
“I am not going to commit to any time frame without understanding what the problems (with the electricity outages) are. I want us to be very realistic about the problems. I am not going to lie to you – I can’t give you any direct answers right now.
“My primary duty is to serve you guys but there are structures within the municipality.”
Residents also wanted to know if Mbongwe resided in Vryheid and when he replied that he does not, he was asked whether he takes his job ‘seriously’.
There were also questions over what happens to the money that resident pay to the municipality in the form of rates and service charges.
Mbongwa replied that the new budget year only started on July 1. He referred to the previous year when the municipality had to operate with an unfunded budget which left his department with minimal resources to maintain proper service delivery. He added that since the new budget year is now active, tar could be ordered to fill the potholes in town.
Turning to the electricity problems, Mbongwa explained that the town is currently running on only one transformer since the other transformer has ‘historical’ issues.
“We have a lot of challenges, including cable theft, old infrastructure but these are not the only problems.”
He indicated that the transformer would be fixed within the next two weeks. The transformer that has been running currently will also be serviced.
“Once load-shedding ends, the electrical load is too heavy for the single transformer and that is when it trips and leaves the town without power for another hour or more.”
Another question was the capabilities of the municipal electricians to which Mbongwa responded that only qualified electricians are employed. The issue about the call centre’s inefficiency was also addressed. Other service delivery issues were also raised and after more than an hour, it was decided that another meeting must be scheduled.
Another meeting was scheduled at 5pm on August 14 in the municipal chambers which will be attended by the mayor, the municipal manager and all other department representatives to address the current issues further and to get some commitments and proper explanations to the community’s complaints.
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The news provided to you in this link comes to you from the editorial staff of the Vryheid Herald, a sold newspaper distributed in the Vryheid area.
