A community initiative dubbed “Operation winter warmth” took place on July 12, where 200 blankets and vegetables were donated to the elderly community of ward 6.

The effort was headed by ward councillor Mafinki Tloome, alongside respective ward committee members and supporting donors, whose aims were to help the elderly combat the chills of winter.

Operation winter warmth, started in 2022. “We host it every year without fail,” said Tloome, who additionally mentioned that the previous year (2024), the initiative was shared with ward 11.

Tloome spoke of the organisation of this year’s project, “The initiative was funded through myself and other stake holders. It was not funded through the municipality,” he said.

Talking about his relationship with stakeholders, Tloome said: “My relationship with stakeholders started a few years ago when I wasn’t a ward councillor and they saw potential in the project and joined me in the social uplift initiatives that we were conducting.”

Tloome highlights that community uplift programmes such as this one have been a part of his activist efforts to provide access to basic human rights to his community.

“We have been doing many community upliftment  programs. In 2015 we have painted about 100 houses  in and around Ikageng up to Klipdrift,” he said.

The ward councillors’ main goal as a municipality representative is “…to service all sectors of the society. We have resolved to also empower the youth of our ward by taking them to security grades school to curb the huge rate of unemployment.”