Disappointing oversight visit for councillor

Democratic Alliance (DA) proportional representation (PR) councillor Ugan Chetty was disappointed during a recent oversight visit to the Mahhashini area of Wembezi.

Slow progress with regards to service delivery and hordes of illegal dumping greeted Chetty and DA activist Avanash Lakhan on October 7.

According to Chetty, one of the main access roads is still in a poor state as well.

“I was disappointed to find that the road, which runs along the length of the boundary of Mahhashini, is still corrugated and furthermore sections have been dug up for new water pipe laying and have not been back-filled and levelled out. This is a definite risk to motorists and pedestrians,” said Chetty.

During the visit, he was informed by one of the residents that the road, in its current state, is almost inaccessible during heavy rains, turning it into a ‘slip and slide’.

While residents were appreciative to receive water in their homes, they said that the piped water project was experiencing many delays.

“Slow service delivery leads to disgruntled communities and protests. We should always ensure that these service delivery projects are monitored closely on an ongoing basis. The piped water project should have finished by now and residents should be receiving water on tap in their yards,” commented Chetty.

As the visit continued, Chetty was alarmed at the amount of illegally dumped waste, which he says is on almost every street corner.

“Building rubble, household rubbish and general litter was found and this concerns me, as we have regular household refuse collection in the area. Residents we engaged with said that most of the refuse was from stray animals (dogs) that destroy the refuse bags, rummaging for things to eat before the refuse collection, and also some residents who blatantly dump their refuse instead of taking it out on ‘bin day’,” Chetty said.

He urged the community of Mahhashini to refrain from illegal dumping, but rather arrange for proper waste disposal.

“As the DA PR councillor for Ward 17 Mahhashini, I will be engaging with the relevant department managers, the acting municipal manager and the newly-appointed municipal manager of uThukela to raise these issues found during my oversight visit so that the community gets services delivered,” concluded Chetty.

NOW READ: Providing comfort for rape survivors

Click to receive news links via WhatsApp. Or for the latest news, visit our webpage or follow us on Facebook and Twitter