Have your say

As residents await this year’s elections, The African Reporter headed to the Springs CBD to hear the issues residents want to address before they make their mark on this year’s ballot.

Most residents working or residing in the CBD mentioned one issue affecting them – pollution. It’s hard to ignore the smell of rubbish and sewage when walking the streets.

Besides residents dealing with air pollution, there is the problem of unregulated waste disposal on almost every street.

“Springs is polluted, so the local government should hire people to come and clean the environment. It’s not a good working environment,” Veli Mhlanga, a car guard, said.

The health risks of sewage exposure include contracting viruses such as gastroenteritis or bacterial infections.

“This place is dirty because the municipality is not doing its work. The municipality has workers who get paid to clean this town, but they do not do it,” community member Watson Moswane said.

However, Tswatedi Lepelle, whose business operates on 5th Avenue, disagreed with Moswane’s comments, saying illegal businesses operating on the streets caused the pollution.

“The municipal workers are doing their job. They work from Monday to Friday. The municipal truck fetches the waste. The reason it’s dirty is because of people who sell here illegally.

“For example, some people sell corn or distribute flyers illegally. They leave the corn remains on the street, contributing to the area’s uncleanliness.

“The biggest problem we were dealing with in town is nyaope addicts. They open the rubbish bags, disposing of the waste on the streets.

“Things became better when they were kicked off the streets. Now, the biggest contributing factor to pollution is the undocumented foreigners who operate illegal businesses,” Lepelle said.

Moswane spoke about the governing party and their lack of leadership skills.

“In every organisation, there is a leader. For example, our municipality has a manager. People complain that our country is dirty, so my question is, where are the municipal managers?

“Our president is supposed to check in with the municipal managers to find out why community members complain about pollution.

“We must all vote in the upcoming elections. If you are unhappy about the current government, you must vote for the party you think will make a change.”

Lepelle mentioned the matter of undocumented foreigners living in SA illegally. He said the issue lies with the governing party.

“We are tired of criticising the ANC. This country does not belong to the ANC; it belongs to the people, and we have the right to elect a government that will have solutions to our grievances,” he added.

Residents are encouraged to participate in the African Reporter’s The Choice is Yours series.

To contribute, send your leads for this editorial series to xoliswak@caxton.co.za and buhle@caxton.co.za, marking the subject line: The Choice is Yours. Attach to the mail a photo illustrating the area of concern, its location and a brief description.