Govan Mbeki Municipality drags feet to fix flat after fire
Davies Court also battles with water leaks for four years.
An elderly woman living at Davies Court is still without electricity after a fire damaged her flat on July 15.
The building at Davies Court belongs to the Govan Mbeki Municipality (GMM). Residents formed a committee that opened a clinic and provided other services to the Davies Court residents.
According to the committee, they contacted the municipality numerous times to restore electricity to the burnt.
They only sent an insurance company last week to investigate the cause of the fire.
The committee and Jan du Plessis, chairman of AfriForum’s branch in Secunda, offered to restore the electricity and fix up her place, but a municipality representative said they were not allowed.
“I sent letters to the municipality and presented my suggestion in writing,” said Du Plessis.
At one stage when the committee members contacted the municipality, they heard the municipality did not have an electrician to fix the problem.
The woman was visiting her neighbour when the fire started. She managed to save her two dogs from the burning flat.
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The Secunda community opened their hearts and overwhelmed her with everything she needed to set up a home again when the municipality finally managed to fix her flat.
She visited her children in the Northern Cape after her flat burnt and is currently living with another resident of Davies Court until her flat is repaired.
The committee thanked the community for supporting them and donating so many things. Another problem at Davies Court is water leaks.
Du Plessis, who is also a committee member at Davies Court, said some of those water leaks had been there for four years.
The committee contacted the municipality numerous times about this but to no avail.
The Ridge Times asked Donald Green, spokesman of GMM who in the municipality was responsible for the maintenance at Davies Court; if the municipality was aware of the water leaks at this block of flats and when will they be fixed.
Green said nothing was reported to the municipality. The Ridge Times also asked him when the municipality would fix the flat after the fire destroyed it; why was it taking so long to fix; and why does the municipality not allow the committee and the community to fix it.
Green replied the municipality sent their electricians to fix the power fault. The municipality is waiting for the insurance company to authorise the repairs after they complete a site inspection.
