Sebokeng West community closes Emfuleni
VANDERBIJLPARK. – Over the past weeks Emfuleni Local Municipality has been under much scrutiny and communities have lost faith in the leading party and its governance. Communities of Sebokeng West that consist of 11 wards marched to Emfuleni Local Municipality(ELM) recently and closed access to the Municipality. The community claimed to have numerous grievances against the Department of Water and Sanitation and Rand Water.
They further highlighted people they met and engaged with before they resorted to march to the Emfuleni offices. Simon Maphangula, Bheki Nkosi and others are people they claimed to have engaged with without any valid answers prior to the march. Themba Nkuna, one of the leaders, said this is not the first time they had tried to engage with their leaders, meaning Emfuleni, and the provincial government.
“We have closed the Golden Highway numerous times and nothing seems to work or click with those in power. We are hungry and angry. We need jobs,” said one of the protesters during the Emfuleni close-up. The march was directed at the Executive Mayor Jacob Khawe, who was not available to receive their memorandum. They feel that the Department of Water and Sanitation, and Rand Water, are playing games.
According to the community, voicing out the matter to the media is the only way. Community leader Ditaba Mathabela said, “We as the community have proposed that we have a local subcontract SMME that needs to be empowered and developed by the project. Therefore we have requested that we should be the ones who are taken for training and workshops in the basics of businesses in construction while we still prepare the establishment of Module 7. We hope this will avoid hiccups during the running of Module 7 and eliminate most of the errors experienced in module 6.”
