The people of Evaton expressed their frustrations about their living conditions to President Cyril Ramaphosa during his visit to the Emfuleni Local Municipality on Friday.
The residents complained about lack of service delivery, raw sewage flowing through the streets, filthy streets and potholes in the area.
“Emfuleni municipal workers do not attend to our requests. They are here today because Ramaphosa is here to assess our situation. We live with raw sewage in our backyards,” an angry elderly woman shouted as the visit proceeded.
“We can’t live like this honestly anymore because this is just another day where the government will come here and no action will be taken. We are tired; please attend to our grievances,” she added.
Ramaphosa led a government delegation on his oversight visit to Emfuleni Local Municipality on Friday to gauge service delivery developments, progress, and steps taken to improve service delivery in Sedibeng District Munipality.
They were welcomed by dirt, potholes, and litter as they made their way to some of their destinations.
The community told the media that they live with sewage and dirt every day.
As part of his oversight visit, Ramaphosa passed by the Sebokeng Waste Water Treatment Plant, which has been struggling to keep up with its production capacity.
The municipality has faced difficulties in the provision of water services and other infrastructure issues, which led the national Department of Water and Sanitation to intervene and effect upgrades and improvements to critical bulk pipelines and pump station infrastructure.
This is Ramaphosa’s second visit to a wastewater treatment plant. In June, he visited the Rooiwal wastewater treatment plant in Tshwane and then proceeded to Temba Stadium to address the Hammanskraal community following the cholera outbreak.
The Department of Water and Sanitation upgraded critical bulk pipelines and pump station infrastructure in Emfuleni.
The Minister of Water and Sanitation, Senzo Mchunu, highlighted some of the difficulties they have encountered in the wastewater treatment plants when doing inspections.
To fix the wastewater treatment facility, he said the department upgraded critical bulk pipelines and pump station infrastructure in Emfuleni.
Mchunu said there were 24 contractors in Sebokeng and other related areas where new pipes were placed.
Residents told IOL that they had been complaining about the plant for almost two decades, saying that sewage spills were polluting their homes and water.
Meanwhile, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi said there was a need to review the funding model of municipalities and also caution and support those who were not paying for services.
He said that 10 out of 11 municipalities in Gauteng were suffering severe financial losses, adding that they were trapped in debt within State institutions.
“They owe Eskom and Rand Water,” he said.
Ramaphosa’s visit is aimed at improving cooperative governance with municipalities.
kamogelo.moichela@inl.co.za
IOL Politics