Duduza residents finally submit their memorandum of grievance
The residents of Duduza submitted their memorandum two weeks after they took to the streets.
Kwatsaduza – The residents of Duduza finally submitted their list of grievances at a stakeholder meeting where the MMC allocated to Duduza for service delivery, Tambo Mokoena, was present on Monday.
A group called the Umphakathi Community Forum represented the residents.
On March 1, the residents took to the streets, blocked them with burning tyres and rocks and demanded services in the area.
During the protest, the residents failed to submit their memorandum but got to engage with their leaders in a stakeholder meeting.
The forum’s grievances included, among others:
• Unemployment;
• Slow response times from the police department;
• Unfinished RDP housing projects;
• Road maintenance and upgrades;
• Lack of communication, feedback, and responsiveness from ward councillors;
• Lack of maintenance of recreational facilities and sports grounds;
• Water interruptions and water cuts;
• Power outages and load reduction.
Mokoena reassured that there would be continuous engagements between the community and public representatives in the area.
“This is to ensure they receive adequate feedback on the proposed solutions to the grievances and their resolution.
“The residents and community forums have a responsibility to keep up to date with information by forming part of service delivery and information WhatsApp groups in the community, following the city’s official social media pages and website, and reading announcements on municipal boards at their local Customer Care Centres,” she said.
She added that there should also be concerted efforts from the office of the MEC of CoGTA and the city to educate the community on the roles and responsibilities of the councillors.
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“It is evident that some people are unaware of the limitations of councillors in terms of their role and often set unrealistic expectations for service delivery.
“Councillors and government cannot intervene in the business sector and cannot control the hiring practices of businesses and local industry.
“Equally so, councillors, public representatives and officials should be active and create spaces where they do not exist, where residents can relay service delivery concerns and have them responded to,” she added.
The MMC urged the residents to explore other avenues to relay their concerns and frustrations before embarking on protest action.
“The right to undertake peaceful protest action is a legitimate constitutional right. However, protest action should be undertaken within the limits of the constitution, and be performed without breaking the law or destroying public property and community infrastructure.”
