The Concern Artist Movement is concerned about the state of Sijongile Ndamase Community Hall in eMbalenhle.
This group of artists said the community hall is vandalised because there are no activities at the hall.
Community organisations are also not allowed to use it because the Govan Mbeki Municipality notified the community that the hall was going to be renovated. This was three years ago, but no work has been done since.
“We were denied access to use the hall. It has instead turned into the playground of drug addicts and dealers.
“They sleep there, smoke their drugs and vandalise the infrastructure,” said Absalom Nkabinde.
Since the renovation notice three years ago, the community organisations have to do their activities outside the hall.
“Meanwhile, the addicts and dealers are allowed inside.
“I find it strange that our hall is near the eMbalenhle Police Station, yet the drug dealers and addicts do as they wish,” said Nkabinde.
According to Nkabinde, the hall is no longer safeguarded because the security personnel from the company that was safeguarding it, are afraid of these addicts.
“Vandalism was happening in front of them,” explained Nkabinde.
These artists put up the slogans #Look at the state of Sijongile Ndamase Community hall, #Renovation of Sijongile Ndamase Community hall and # Give artists free access to use public infrastructure, with the aim to let the municipality take notice of neglect of community infrastructure.
They said if the municipality does not take action against these addicts who are continuously vandalising the hall, it will collapse.
“That will be painful because it was one of the first infrastructures we inherited from the past government.
“What the municipality has done by denying us access to the hall with the pretence to renovate it, has yielded bad results.
“Everyone who wants to use the hall is being told the hall is closed for renovation, but maybe these addicts are renovating it since 2019,” said Nkabinde.
When the newspaper visited the hall, the doors were removed and burglar bars and other facilities such as toilets were broken.
Donald Green, acting manager of Communications, said the municipality is looking at other sources of funding to upgrade and renovate some of the depilated public amenities, including the Sijongile Ndamase Community Hall.
