R80-million to finally fix the Memel Road
R80 million has been allocated on the budget for the Memel Road. Motorists who have suffered damage to their vehicles due to the condition of the Memel Road can lodge a claim with the legal services office of the Free State government.
Official press release
More than five years after Johan Pieters and Christo van der Vyver resolved to end the carnage caused by potholes on what has come to be known as ‘Death Road’, they can finally announce, “Mission accomplished.”
Over the years motorists have suffered extensive damage to their vehicles due to the large craters that span the Free State side of the R34 (Memel Road), and countless lives have been lost by motorists veering into the oncoming lane to avoid the potholes.
What started as a polite knock at the door of the MEC for Police, Roads and Transport eventually intensified into a persistent clamouring that the Free State government could no longer ignore.
More than 1 000 people joined the Facebook page geared toward having the road repaired. 7 280 people signed the on-line petition initiated by Mr Pieters and Mr van der Vyver. Having access to a social media platform to air their frustration, motorists accused the Free State government of murder for every collision that resulted in fatalities, and the attempted murder of every life the Memel Road could have claimed.
Plans were also being made to close the Memel Road for a public gathering, during which a memorandum was to be handed to the Free State government. This initiative was supported by Newcastle mayor, Afzul Rehman, who called the road, “A Death Trap.”
Being reassured by the Free State government year after year that the Memel Road was, ‘On the priority list,’ became tedious, so Mr Pieters and Mr van der Vyver tried to arrange a meeting with Free State Premier, Sekgobelo Magashule, to impress upon him the urgency of repairing road. This stretch of road is the gateway into KwaZulu-Natal, regularly used by businessmen and women commuting between Durban and Johannesburg.
“We tried from May to arrange a meeting with the Premier and followed up every two weeks to try and schedule a date, only to be told the Premier was too busy. That was when we decided to rally support from business people to sponsor a quarter page advertising space in a national Sunday newspaper to write an open letter to the national minister, Mme Dipuo Peters,” said Mr Pieters.
Soon after Mr Pieters and Mr van der Vyver publically announced their intention, they received a telephonic invitation to meet with the Free State government. The Newcastle delegation to the Free State comprised of Mr Pieters, Mr van der Vyver, portfolio councillor for Planning Development and Human Settlements, Matthew Shunmugam, regional chairman of the ANC, Arthur Zwane, and Nico Oosthuizen, a Newcastle businessman who flew the entire delegation to Bloemfontein at no cost.
Yesterday (Jan, 23) the delegation returned from the meeting with the Free State government after securing a commitment those repairs to the Memel Road should begin in April 2014. The Head of Department of Police, Roads and Transport gave his word that R80 million had been allocated on the budget for the Memel Road for now, and he promised, “The road will not be the same again.”
Motorists who have suffered damage to their vehicles due to the condition of the Memel Road can lodge a claim with the legal services office of the Free State government.
A sworn affidavit which outlines the incident and where it took place, a police report, if possible, photos of the damage to the vehicle, and photos of the cause of the damage are required to lodge a claim.
For more information contact M P Molotsi on 051 403 7442 or email molotsim@freetrans.gov.za or visit www.memelroad.co.za
