Polokwane Observer spoke to Hartlief who says he noted that a number of people were criticising the protests for a number of reasons, mainly because the protests were disrupting services such as transport and those who were on the frontline by saying they might have political ambitions.
In a post on a social media page, Hartlief explains that he is not a spokesperson nor been appointed by anyone or any organisation but as an ordinary Westenburger to share some insight on the protest.
This comes after the community walked out of the second meeting with the municipality and the relevant departments just days after they walked out of the first one. He says this was because no concrete feedback was given by the officials.
“The department heads each had an opportunity to address us and explain what their department is doing about the social ills in Westenburg. Needless to say, the community walked out of the meeting because nothing substantial was given. This was the second meeting the community walked out because the feeling was that no one told us anything concrete about what they are doing to fix the situation.“
He says it is important for everyone to understand what the protest is about in order to support it because the issues raised affect the city as well. According to Hartlief, he has been staying in Westenburg for over 40 years and some of these issues have been prevalent for as long.
“The reason for my post on the group is just to bring all community members on board. You can see that our community face monumental social challenges and have been neglected for way too long. These challenges impact each and everyone of us directly or indirectly. This way, next time when we have people fighting for our community, everyone will have an idea what it is about.”
He says not everyone can be in the frontline, but when we do have people fighting for us, sacrificing themselves for us, even if you do not agree with them, instead of judging and criticising, show some understanding.
