Limpopo villagers repair road amid government inaction
Frustrated by years of government inaction, residents took matters into their own hands, collectively funding and repairing the D500 road.
LIMPOPO – After numerous unsuccessful attempts to get Roads Agency Limpopo and the Department of Public Works, Roads and Infrastructure to repair the pothole-ridden D500, residents of Tshiendeulu, Mazwimba and Maname recently took it upon themselves to mend the 12km stretch of gravel road between the three villages.
The road is especially difficult to use during the rainy season.
Having waited patiently for the powers-that-be to assist, villagers devised a plan to address their challenge.
Each household contributed R100 and motorists R300 and upwards to the road project, which started on November 30.
The villagers made significant strides and the fact that they would complete their project soon, held great promise.
Azwindini Netshiendeulu, one of the residents, said the communities were tired of waiting for the municipality to improve the road.
“We worked on our road piece by piece and we were hopeful that we would finish our project soon. We were doing our own thing after they disappointed us for many years.”
He continued to say that the village has been a hive of activity in recent weeks, as the communities feel neglected by RAL and the Department of Roads.
“This is becoming a serious problem. In a way, we are worse off than before. We do not know if they are waiting for an accident to happen and for people to die.
“Residents are under pressure, but we are also not prepared to sit back and watch how the village wanes. We are taking ownership of the problems, but we appeal to partners to chip in and help us rehabilitate the D500,” said Nesthiendeulu.
Roads spokesperson Emmanuel Mongwe acknowledged that there is a backlog in terms of road repairs, but that the D500 is on their list.
