Germiston historic cemetery in a terrible state
A budget must be allocated to refurbish most of the cemeteries in Ekurhuleni.
The historic Thomas Titus Nkobi Memorial Park, formerly known as South Park Cemetery, in Germiston is in a dire state.
ALSO READ: Edenvale residents clean up local cemetery
This site and Boksburg Cemetery have been targeted by vandals who have defaced the remembrance wall of the Boksburg Cemetery and destroyed the palisade fence and vibracrete wall of the cemetery’s extension.
Litter lies atop the graves, and no security personnel are onsite. The Titus Nkobi Cemetery has experienced the same issues.
Some tombstones were destroyed at both cemeteries.
The entrance to the Boksburg Cemetery is littered with potholes, as are the streets around the cemetery.
Kgomotso Matlala visited a family grave at the Titus Nkobi Cemetery on Father’s Day and said she was pained by the state of the cemetery.
ALSO READ: Grass gets cut at local cemetery
“Maintenance work is not done at the cemetery. Litter lies on the ground of the gravesite, and the graves at the far back of the cemetery are not taken care of. There are no good pathways,” Matlala added.
Matlala appealed to the metro to take care of the cemetery, erect pathways, and put in waste bins and signage.
“The metro must inject the same budget to repair the cemeteries as they do to erect paving in areas around Ekurhuleni.”
Ward 32 Clr Marius de Vos said the Boksburg Cemetery was appalling.
“What causes me the biggest headache is the perimeter fence that keeps disappearing bit by bit. What shocked me the most was the vandalism of the remembrance wall.
ALSO READ: Ekurhuleni reader unhappy with conditions at local cemetery
“There are no security personnel at the cemetery, and I think the whole thing compromises the safety of the cemetery and the people who visit their loved ones.
“Routine maintenance work is lacking at the cemetery,” De Vos added.
De Vos noted that the streets around the cemetery were in poor condition because of the potholes.
“The metro must do something to address the issues in the cemetery and outside of it,” he concluded.
