The green wheelie bins that stand like toy soldiers on sidewalks late at night have now also entered the political arena. The municipal election is in November, and never before have councillors jumped out of an ash bin as quickly as they are now. Problems are being reported left and right.

The unreliable removal of garbage has residents furious. Should I put out my wheelie bin or not?
The first to respond with a statement on WhatsApp groups was Councillor Juanette Mentz of the Freedom Front Plus. This was followed by Alderman San-Mari Wait and Councillor Helda de Klerk of the DA.

In the meantime, mayoral candidate Bosman Grobler has released a video in which he criticises service delivery in Middelburg. It has been learned that Grobler is also not happy with the condition of the Kees Taljaard Stadium. He will visit the facilities today.

Here’s what other councillors have to say:

Councillor Juanette Mentz (VF Plus):

I was with the Director of Waste Management. He said that new contracts have been signed with a business for three years for more trucks. But there is now unhappiness among the workers about the level they are at now.

Because the supervisors who come with the new trucks are at level eight, and the supervisors who work on our trucks are at level seven, and sometimes our supervisors also have to work on those trucks. So the municipal manager has now referred it to the bargaining committee. The new trucks have withdrawn the business for now, because they are afraid their trucks will be vandalised… but their contract starts on the 1st of July 2026. This is the first problem.

The second problem is the overtime that is crippling our municipality because the people start working from 06:00 to 16:00, then from 16:00 the new shift takes over. It was too much overtime, so the MM has now stopped that; they only work until 18:30 now.

The third problem, our own municipal trucks break down every now and then, because they are old. We currently have three trucks. I gave him the list of all the streets that I received. He said they are looking into, maybe emptying the bins in those areas on Saturday. He will send an SMS tomorrow to say if they will work on Saturday. He will let us know. I will keep you updated as soon as we receive the SMS.

So bring your bins in. There will be no bins emptied in those areas today. Believe me, I showed the director how unhappy the residents are. They are taking note of it, so we now hope and pray that all these problems are sorted out as soon as possible.

Alderman San-Mari Wait (DA):

The municipality is waiting for new trucks that are currently being converted. In the meantime, seven trucks were hired, each with a driver provided by the owner. However, the contracts for these hired trucks have been cancelled because the workers refused to operate them, as the vehicles could not be driven by our own drivers.

This means only three trucks are now available for refuse collection. The overtime costs incurred due to the refusal to use the hired trucks are putting additional strain on the municipality’s finances. Steps must be taken to cut these costs and to encourage the workers to resolve the issue.

This is a short-term problem that requires management through these measures. We understand residents’ frustrations, and believe me, we are facing the same problem. However, this situation needs immediate attention; otherwise, it will escalate and become more challenging to control.