DEAR Editor,-
My jaw dropped when I saw the article declaring Ugu council the ‘best of the best’ and being showered with awards for top service delivery. How bad are the rest?
There was the mayor collecting the award, looking like the cat that ate the canary and then a saucer of milk!
Last week’s front page of the Herald declared ‘We want answers’ (for the lack of water to homes).
In the body of the paper there were photos of collapsed water tanks, which are supposed to dispense water to folks who do not have water due to Ugu’s inefficiency.
We constantly see fountains of water from burst pipes, craters where pipes have been dug up and afterwards when pipes have been fixed, our taps deliver muddy water for days afterwards. Once fixed, another week to 10 days for the road repair team to come and repair the road and then another age for the tarring team to come and do their thing.
In the De Wet street area of Margate, they have been without water for 10 days and it’s only dribbling through now.
A resident (white) in the area was saying that a lot of black folks from the area do not have cars and she feels so sorry for them – there are disabled people and young children without water.
This necessitates youngsters, whose ages she estimates to be between 12 and 14, labouring under the weight of cans and buckets to carry water home – and only when there is water in the tanks.
When they have walked to the ‘nearest’ water point and find the tank empty or destroyed, where do they go then? People with cars can drive to the next point, these children go back home empty-handed.
Mrs Mayor, if I were you, I would hang my head in shame and offer to give the award back.
To the Herald staff, our deepest condolences that you have to publish such cringe-worthy articles. However you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t, as was the case with the recent lifesaver facilities saga.
Publish criticism (even when it is backed by photographs) and you are condemned for having a racist vendetta against the council. If you do not publish the article showing off the ‘awards’ then you will be criticised for not supporting the news articles sent by the council spokesperson.
Ho hum. Idi Amin Dada awarded himself all those medals and titles and see where that got him – it is all smoke and mirrors.
TONGUE IN CHEEK
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