Bickering of pothole repair projects

The civil rights organisation, AfriForum is gaining momentum with their potholes repairs. However the local municipality is not at all happy with their approach.

“No institution or individual has the necessary authority to fix potholes and claim compensation from the municipality unless with prior agreement. The council carries the legal responsibility for roads and will compensate road users for damages on the roads caused by any road condition. Any institution working on the road without due authority will be exposed to such claims as the municipality will legally be exempt from damages should the work been done be without municipal authority,” Municipal Manager, Mr Theo van Vuuren lashed out.

Van Vuuren said the correct process will be to approach the municipality to agree on an area and the assistance required.

Public funding utilised by the municipality is annually allocated on projects per a public participation process and expenditure against the approved budget is regulated by the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA). No organisation can implement work on behalf of the municipality and claim from the municipal budget without the work and amounts following the MFMA processes that had been properly budgeted for.

“Therefore as the press statement by Afriforum contains work outside of the pothole programme already in place by the municipality, any payments outside the programme and budget are contrary to the MFMA as it has not been appropriated for and will be dealt with as unauthorised and irregular,” Van Vuuren said.

He said the municipality is currently in litigation against Afriforum for a matter of a similar nature where they have claimed funds from the municipality.

“In this respect the indication is that should they continue with the work they plan a similar situation is likely to arise. In this respect it should be noted that there are also case law confirming that the municipal approach to this matter is reasonable. I would prefer a rational approach by all parties and would rather welcome Afriforum to engage with the municipality in a constructive manner to jointly address the pothole issue. The current approach is counter productive,” he said.

Mr Hillel Coetzer, branch coordinator for AfriForum said they reprimanded the municipality about the potholes on several occasions.

“We did follow the necessary steps and procedures to fix the potholes at a cost of R81 000 in eMalahleni,” Coetzer said.

He mentioned that AfriForum had a meeting with Van Vuuren on Monday, May 23 to pave the way forward.
AfriForum identified May-month as the pothole-repair-month. According to the organisation R2 million have been approved for the project.

During their last meeting it was decided that Hans Strydom Street, Theunis Jansen Street and Rosemead Street will receive the necessary attention.

Mr Alfred Friess, chairman of AfriForum Witbank branch requested members to make themselves available in their different sectors as co-coordinators.

“In every street we need a responsible person to be the nose and the ears of the residents in that specific street,” Friess said.

On Tuesday, May 31 AfriForum will be having a rearranging meeting at Cater4U at the Portuguese Hall at 19:00. Friess asked experts on water, sewerage, security, electricity and environmental conservation to become part of the organisation.

Over the past three years more than 40 000 sq meters of potholes have been repaired by the municipality but as a result of various factors, amongst others the age of the roads, the high volume of traffic and the high water table, the roads remain under stress and new potholes are being formed on a daily basis, especially after rain.
At this stage, despite all previous and current efforts, it is still estimated that there are more than 50 000 sq meters of potholes in the city. It is especially the roads in the suburbs, the residential areas, which can not be repaired right now as the priority is on the main roads.

“The cost to replace all roads, as an ultimate solution, is astronomical, therefore our only solution at this stage is to address critical problem areas and maintain main roads and areas serving public facilities such as hospitals and schools within available funds. We are further expanding our reach by mobilising additional resources and supporting the community organisations that also assist in the fixing of some roads. Various such initiatives are ongoing where the municipality provide materials and community members provide the labour,” Van Vuuren explained the municipality’s efforts.

For the 2015/2016 financial year, a sum of R9 million was budgeted for the repair of roads. R4.1 million was spent on the repair of OR Tambo Road, Mandela-, Steenkamp- and Botha Streets and Hectorway.

A tender of R2.9 million has been awarded for further patching and repairs and a further R2 million is allocated for the purchase of hot and cold mix for use by Eskom and Kusile on the eastern side of eMalahleni.

“We have entered into a contract with 12 small companies to repair a further 12 000 sq meters of roads. This programme will be published when they start. Similar amounts and initiatives are included in the budget for 2016/17. Slowly but surely progress is being made,” Van Vuuren said.

In a last word he said the municipality welcomes any institution who cares for the community and wants to contribute to amongst others, pothole repairs.

READ ALSO:
Emalahleni has seven days to fix potholes
Watch AfriForum first potholes fixed