The continued decay of the facilities has already resulted in the cancellation of sports events booked at the stadium.

DA councillor and Nasaret community activist Morgan Bruiners have been very vocal about the lack of maintenance at the stadium over the last few years, going as far as to accuse the municipality of treating the Nasaret community as Middelburg’s “naughty step-child”.

“In this case, it is an entire community being punished,” Mr Bruiners insists.

It is, however, not only the Nasaret community that has seen a decline in the maintenance and upkeep of public facilities, with even Kees Taljaard Stadium now showing signs of steady neglect, not to mention the town’s play parks.

This week, Mr Bruiners again took the administration to task in a written question submitted for Tuesday’s agenda of 2024’s first ordinary council sitting.

He cited a number of issues, like the lack of goalposts for the soccer field, as well as a pavilion for seating. He also flagged the uneven surfaces of the sporting facilities, which pose a risk for athletes.

In reply, the municipality played coy, instead, blaming the community for the state of the facilities, “We are aware of the vandalism and theft,” a member of community services replied, despite theft and vandalism not having been mentioned by Mr Bruiners in his missive.

The municipality says that efforts were made to secure the facilities by placing security personnel on-site. As a result, the ablution facilities have been spared from attacks by vandals and remain in good condition.

Apparently, on-site security does not conduct perimeter patrols, resulting in stolen fences.

The municipality said it would replace the fences and level the sporting grounds with what’s available in the operational budget, while additional funding for security had meanwhile been requested.

In regard to bookings, the municipality again shrugged responsibility, saying schools should mark out their own athletics tracks once bookings have been approved.