Service delivery a huge challenge in Dundee area, say residents
Questions were posed regarding tenders where contractors who receive tenders are paid a percentage of the contracts, only to abandon the work and leave it uncompleted.
The Endumeni Ratepayers Association held a meeting on Thursday evening at the Sarel Cilliers High School hall to discuss all grievances regarding service delivery in the area.
Vice-chairperson Willie Steenberg welcomed those who braved a storm to attend, including guest speakers FC Bester and Councillor Salim Abdool.
Lack of service delivery was on top of the agenda, where non-operational streetlights, water outages and leaks (Umzinyathi’s competency), blocked drains and poor roads were highlighted.
Cllr Abdool said many streetlights had been repaired in Glencoe, Ward 7, where ‘the streets are bright once the sun goes down’.
“Councillors get a ward allocation per ward and it is important that this allocation is used within that ward to improve services,” he told the Courier. He told the meeting there were many challenges in the Endumeni and Umzinyathi municipal areas. Steenberg said the Residents’ Association had registered as a non-profit organisation to assist the community members of the Endumeni district with service delivery.
He appealed to the public to register and join the association on the WhatsApp group to report services needed in the Endumeni area.
Giving feedback on the criminal cases the ERA opened with the SAPS following the dismal Auditor-General’s report that questioned Endumeni Municipality’s viability as a growing concern, Steenberg said the Hawks have taken charge of the docket.
Concerns were again raised over the location of the new Glencoe cemetery and the status of the Dundee cemetery, which is yet to be completed.
The out-of-control electricity theft, said to be running at over R30 million a year, was discussed, as was a statement from Eskom where Endumeni was listed as one of four municipalities in KZN having overdue debt to the power utility that won’t be covered by the National Treasury.
Endumeni received an R75-million bail-out from the National Treasury to ease its debt to Eskom.
However, the municipality has accumulated more debt since March 31, 2023, standing at an additional R44 million that will not be covered by the National Treasury.
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