The cemetery, known as KaSbhula, in Mahushu near Hazyview is reaching capacity.

Residents near the cemetery said there is little to no space left for new burials, and graves are now being dug closer to the R538 regional road.

The site belongs to a traditional authority and was provided to the community to reduce travel costs to cemeteries managed by the City of Mbombela (CoM).

Mpumalanga News has not yet been able to identify the traditional authority responsible for the site.

The cemetery has a history of basic maintenance challenges, including the lack of an accessible road, insufficient debushing, no toilets and inadequate fencing.

Funeral attendees must park along the curb of the R538 and walk to the burial site, raising safety concerns.

Only the hearse can reach the graves directly.

A similar situation has been reported in Phola.

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The imminent closure of the cemeteries in Mahushu and Phola will create further difficulties. Families may now have to travel to Mganduzweni or use CoM-managed cemeteries such as Nkambeni Regional Cemetery in KaMajika, or Rocky Drift Cemetery in White River.

The president of the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa, Kgoshi Mathupa Mokoena, said this is unfair to the community.

“Emakhosi can provide land to assist their communities, but it is up to the municipality to maintain the cemetery on behalf of the traditional council. They must erect fences and clear the grounds. Cemeteries provided by traditional authorities serve the poorest communities, many of whom cannot even afford to bury their loved ones. Now, they have to travel further,” Mokoena said.

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He added that traditional councils do not receive dedicated budgets to improve service provision.

“We only get grants from the Mpumalanga Department of Co-operative Governance, Human Settlement and Traditional Affairs, which are earmarked for general workers and administration. We are fighting to secure funds so that challenges like this can be addressed,” he said.

CoM spokesperson Joseph Ngala said the Nkambeni Regional Cemetery was obtained from the Mhaule Traditional Authority to serve the southern region and reduce travel costs to Rocky Drift.