Mtuba service delivery in spotlight

WASTE collection has come under the spotlight in some wards in Mtubatuba, with residents complaining that its inconsistency leads to overflowing skip bins, filth and foul odours.

A Ward 5 resident took to social media on Tuesday to share a photograph of an overflowing skip bin, claiming the area where they live is ‘intentionally’ not being serviced.

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The resident further said communities that make use of the skip bin have resorted to burning the uncollected waste.

A Ward 7 resident raised a similar complaint and questioned why residents in their area had not adopted the same solution.

Ward 5 Councillor Sindi Ngubane, however, said all the skip bins in the area were emptied on Monday, including three that were missed last week.

Ward 6 Councillor Mfana Gumede said he has also received complaints about skip bins in KwaMsane township not being consistently emptied.

“These bins sometimes fill up and then flies become a problem, which is when residents complain. The municipality is failing us,” said Gumede, adding that he suspects politicking is at play.

Gumede said it was not clear if the municipality was sticking to the waste collection schedule in Ward 6.

Potholes aplenty
He further questioned why nothing had been done about the deplorable state of the roads in the ward, many of which are punctured with potholes.

The ZO previously reported that two township residents had taken it upon themselves to fill the gaping potholes on a particular busy road with sand, stone and other materials.

Gumede questioned what had become of the funds for this financial year as it was promised that the roads would be fixed at its start on 1 July.

“They are still saying there is no money. What happened to the money, because the national government has paid it to the municipality? Does that mean we have to wait for the next equitable share?” questioned Gumede.

The issue of services, the Ward 6 councillor added, was closely linked to the payment of rates and it was up to the municipality to encourage residents to pay rates by providing quality services.

Gumede said with the ongoing valuation of properties in the township, which is tied to the payment of rates, the municipality was yet to update residents on their request to wipe their rates debt.

Ward 4 Councillor Ntokozo Mthimkhulu said because service delivery means prioritising residents, following complaints from motorists about the road between Mtubatuba town and Nkodibe – which is under the Department of Transport (DoT) – he set politics aside and approached the department at district level so the potholes on that road would be patched, which has been done.

Mthimkhulu encouraged residents to report any other service delivery issues so they could be promptly addressed.
Mthimkhulu previously told the ZO that the municipality would procure materials to patch the potholes in town and other parts of Ward 4.

Meanwhile, the EFF in Mtubatuba has planned oversight visits to the municipality’s various projects and where services having seemingly stalled.

The party’s Friday oversight visits will include KwaMsane township’s internal roads, a project which came to a halt last year with financial challenges cited as the issue; the Machibini sport field; the tourism centre in town; and the contentious rugby field, a project which has played out in court between the municipality and contractor.

The EFF has requested that a municipal official from the relevant department for each of the projects be present to provide updates.

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