Marloth threatens legal action

MARLOTH PARK – The local property owners’ association is accusing the Nkomazi Local Municipality (NLM) of neglecting good governance in the unique bush-style town. NLM has now been threatened with legal action by the property owners’ association. A request to Nkomazi via email on
August 18 and sent again on the 20th and the 21st, remains unanswered. Even a phone call from the municipal manager (MM), Mr Dan Ngwenya to
Ms Pat Wilmans, chairman of the Marloth Park Property Owners Association (MPPOA), regarding security matters led to nothing. Ngenwya promised that the director of Nkomazi Law Enforcement Officers (LEOs), Ms Emma Mahlalela would contact MPPOA to settle the matter. The promise came to nothing.Mr Enoch Sifunda, chief law-enforcement officer, however, called Ms Danielle Hayman, chairman of the community-policing forum and requested that the LEOs’ report be sent to their offices the same day. This could not be arranged on such short notice due to the fact that the the latter is a voluntary service by individuals and they had to arrange for leave from their respective jobs. A meeting was arranged for 09:00 on August 21 at the Nkomazi office in Malalane with the director of the law-enforcement office. The officers travelled to the town, but were hugely disappointed when they arrived at an empty office, with nobody to meet them and no apologies either, Wilmans told Corridor Gazette.The email initially sent on August 18, raised the following issues: The municipality was notified that the MPPOA now had the intention to take whatever steps, legal or other, which were required to ensure the issues on hand were addressed and finalised. The letter also referred to NLM’s core values stated on its website and the fact that officials did not adhere to these: accountability, good governance, transparency, integrity and responsiveness.

“MPPOA has extended the hand of cooperation and assistance to this municipality and various departments on an ongoing basis. This has been made in a very open and transparent manner. “Issues such as the gate control, which property owners pay for and is specified on the monthly rates account (no other property owners in the Nkomazi region pay this), and the extremely poor level of this service which is delivered by the contractor appointed by the municipality with total disregard to the needs of the specific application there has been no response. “After approaching the law-enforcement department of NLM, from which we initially received extremely positive response sanctioned by Ngwenya, permission was received to train eight officers at the property owners’ expense. This is with the very same academy that trains the municipality’s officers, with an undertaking from NLM law enforcement that uniforms would be supplied as well as warning and fine books issued, for the purpose of assisting the municipality by being in Marloth Park at all times, with cooperation promised from this department. “A stipend of R3 000 per month was also promised and acknowledged in the independent development-plan meeting by the MM this year, in the presence of the mayor as well as the chairman of that meeting MMC, Mr Million Shongwe. “Failure by Ngwenya to have these trained officers acknowledged has rendered them almost useless. “This despite his assurance that these officers would be legalised and acknowledged including the stipend at the end of July 2015, several messages to the mayor and MM after being initially responded to, are now totally ignored.” Other issues raised are the blatant disregard of town-planning laws and the management of the dump site. The municipality was given seven working days to comply. An official meeting for the mayor, the municipal manager and the executive together with the Marloth Park property owners to attend and an agenda with solutions and tangible solutions and completion dates, was requested. “Should the NLM not grant us a satisfactory meeting and solutions, we will have no choice but to secure satisfaction by every alternative means available to us.” MPPOA also issued a breakdown of some of the costs recently carried by the property owners in various projects to ensure proper governance and municipal management in the township. An amount of R45 000 for the wildlife fund for the additional feeding of animals, R20 000 per month for the past 18 months for the upliftment of the dump site, R30 000 for the training of law-enforcement officers and R43 000 for veld assessment and management. NLM has yet to respond from enquiries from Corridor Gazette regarding these matters.