POLOKWANE – Westenburg Community Development Forum (WDF) Chairperson, Ray Goulkan welcomed the community and speakers.
Some of the points that were answered include:
• The 600 units in Extension 40 were being serviced and the Westenburg community stopped the project; 497 of the 600 units/stands are owned by New Pietersburg land claims, and the remaining103 stands will be available to applicants.
• A contractor was still waiting for a pump in order to fix the swimming pool, and the pump will be available within this month as the suppliers were closed in December. They are still waiting.
Read more: Westenburg: ‘We are being undermined as a community’
Goulkan further gave the community an overview from the last meeting.
“We had numerous engagement with Land Affairs and Rural Development and Extension 40 beneficiaries, but we did not come to any agreement as they persistently insisted that the project should continue with the exclusion of the Westenburg community, keeping in mind that there are a lot of people who reside in Westenburg who emerge from New Pietersburg, but they were informed that they don’t meet the criteria in regard to Extension 40,” Goulkan said.
In July last year, the forum decided enough was enough, several arrests were made after the protest, and there was a court case opened against some of the protesters, but the case was withdrawn. “We’ve put all of that behind us as we’re starting on a clean slate,” Goulkan added.
Joey Thompson, Connie Ross and Christo van Scalkvyk.
More demands were raised: floods in the area which left potholes in the streets, rehabilitation of parks and sports facilities, CCTV to be installed in Westenburg, tariffs to be reduced, Westenburg Stadium fence falling apart, Westenburg Community Hall ceiling that’s stained and caving in.
Goulkan mentioned that Westenburg has the highest rate of homeless people and therefore there are a lot of people still living with their parents.
Issues on gender based violence were also raised in the meeting.
