Pretoria East residents say municipal service delivery is not worth the rates and taxes they pay, with community members opting to fix neglected infrastructure themselves ahead of the November 4 local government election.

Community activist Matt Beale, founding director of the Alpha Security Forum, said Ward 46 residents have reported broken streetlights for years, with some outages lasting up to 10 years.

He explained that well-lit areas deter criminals, prompting the security forum to seek a Community Upliftment Precinct (CUP) agreement with the City of Tshwane to install solar streetlights at their own expense. Discussions began in June, but the municipality has not provided feedback.

Residents take action on road repairs

Beale added that ageing water infrastructure frequently causes pipe bursts, leaving residents without water for days, while subsequent municipal excavations remain unpaved for weeks. To address the road conditions, the community raised funds to repair potholes directly.

“We try to fill potholes via community funding and our CUP, having put about one ton of tar back on the roads,” Beale said. “Residents report the potholes on the Alpha website, a ticket is created, and then funded. Once the funding has reached its target, we then fill the potholes.”

Beale emphasised that residents feel they cannot rely solely on the government and must partner with businesses and local communities to maintain their living environment.

Garsfontein and Silverton face prolonged outages

In Garsfontein, resident Theo Mekwa expressed frustration over ongoing outages and infrastructure neglect since the 2021 local elections.

Mekwa noted that successive DA and ActionSA administrations have failed to deliver services.

“For five years we have been struggling with the same problems in Garsfontein: No water for days, electricity cutting every day, and streetlights that have not worked since 2021,” Mekwa said.

While acknowledging ongoing upgrades to Garsfontein Road, Mekwa stressed that residential streets full of potholes require priority.

He warned that dark streets create opportunities for criminals to rob residents at night.

Leizel Moller from Silverton said service delivery in her area has deteriorated tremendously.

“In our area, we are plagued by ageing water, sanitation and electricity infrastructure, which is not repaired or upgraded,” Moller said.

She said everything fell apart, with no service delivery, maintenance or repairs.

Residents report billing for unfulfilled services

Marietjie van Deventer said service delivery in Silverton is non-existent.

“Residents continue to be billed for maintenance services that are not being delivered,” Van Deventer said. “We have an issue of public toilets in the streets, backyard buildings with no papers, people walking and drinking in the streets, noise pollution and gender-based violence.

“Not a single turnaround time for repairs has been met by the municipality,” Van Deventer said. “We dare the municipality to prove otherwise. Meanwhile, we are the ones filling potholes, cutting grass and cleaning streets.”

She said infrastructure in the suburb is ageing, water pipes keep bursting, and electricity outages last for days, citing a power outage in the area that lasted 13 days after the Waltloo substation caught fire.

Van Deventer added that despite high municipal rates, frustrations remain elevated due to unfulfilled services, public drinking, noise pollution and gender-based violence, which show law enforcement shortcomings.

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