City of Mbombela tackles Gatvol issues, but it’s ‘not a one-day job’
The grass in some public parks and on the pavements have been cut, but the work is ongoing.
While most residents are still gatvol with the City of Mbombela’s (CoM) service delivery, some issues have been addressed.
The Service Delivery Drive (SDD) was introduced to accelerate the services backlog in the CoM’s wards.
In Mbombela, residents in certain areas are still waiting for the grass on the roadsides to be cut, the public parks to be cleaned and the trees to be pruned.
The CoM’s mayor, Sibongile Makushe-Mazibuko, said they have started working in the affected areas in parts of Mbombela.
The grass had been cut and some parks cleaned. “I must emphasise that the CoM has 45 wards to look after and they all need attention. However, we noted the Gatvol outcry and our officials are attending to issues. It’s not going to be a one-day job, but we are going to get to every affected area,” she said.
ALSO READ: Unkempt pavements and parks leave Mbombela residents gatvol
The SDD is currently in Matsulu after completing the work in KaNyamanzane, where municipal workers were held hostage by residents who were demanding a paved road.
“They were released after the police intervention. It shows all wards want to be serviced with our limited resources. All we ask from our people is that they are patient with us. Continue to report issues and they will be attended to,” she said.
ALSO READ: Gatvol kick-starts City of Mbombela’s Service Delivery Drive
Motorists in Mbombela demand the CoM keeps its promises to repair the potholes near Lowveld High School, in front of Laerskool Bergland, and in Sering and Bosch streets, Koraalboom Avenue and parts of Dr Enos Mabuza Drive. These were reported before the SDD and still nothing had been done.
Despite changing fittings, streetlights on most key roads are still not working. This includes traffic lights on Anderson Street that have been off for more than a year now.
Makushe-Mazibuko reiterated that all the grievances would be addressed if reported to the municipality through the right channels.
As always, no timeline was given for when the work would be done and a lack of funds was blamed. She also said its not like the municipality is not delivering any service and the little that it is doing should be appreciated.
