The sewer and water reticulation that was meant to better the lives of people living in an informal settlement is nothing more than the hideous sight of huge boulders and trenches.
From the time they wake up to the time they go to sleep, the residents of an informal settlement in Ward 1 have to live with rocks almost two metres high and trenches in front of their houses. A construction company has left these unattended hazards in its wake.
According to Godfrey Shoai, one of the residents, the six-month project to install sewer and water pipes that started in 2015 is still not complete, three years later. ‘The ward councillor said those rocks were supposed to have been moved last Tuesday. It has already been a week of empty promises. The children’s lives are in danger because they climb those rocks and accidents might happen,’ he warned.
Another resident, 36-year-old Martha Mbotshane fears for the safety of her two sons, ages 10 and five. ‘The municipality does not care about our lives.
My children always climb those rocks. Even if I scold them, my words just fall on deaf ears. There’s also a huge heap of rubbish in the middle of our neighbourhood. I don’t know why they don’t clear everything,’ she lamented.
The JB Marks municipality had not responded to the Herald’s request for comment.
