DEAR Editor,-
I have just received my invitation to the ‘Amazing Ugu Annual Awards’ event. The blindness that affects the ANC seems to have penetrated even to our lowly South Coast.
The ‘amazing’ awards evening will be a lot of backslapping and self congratulatory handing over of certificates, plaques and trophies.
For what? I am sure that very few towns and tourist venues have suffered as much as our tourist brand Margate has suffered under our local authorities, and especially Ugu.
A short review: A R3-million berm to stop saltwater getting into the local water supplies (washed away with the first big rains after construction); two weeks of saltwater contamination which devastated gardens, created undrinkable domestic water and forced people to buy bottled water; numerous water outages and water restrictions, despite widespread generous rains; no communication from Ugu as to the state of our water supply, or a guess when the ‘drought’ will be over and we can wash our cars and water our gardens again.
No-one wants to come on holiday to a town where they cannot wash their cars or live a normal life.
Meantime property prices continue to plummet and less and less holidaymakers grace our shores with their presence. Margate used to be a thriving holiday town with people in sarongs, costumes and towels walking the streets, popping in and out of shops, buying everything from sandals to beads, ice creams to fancy engraved mugs and candyfloss. Those days are gone.
Last week we counted 22 vacant shops in Margate’s main street. Today there might be more – shops come and go. Prostitutes line the streets, drugs are freely available, traffic policing is strictly 8.30am to 4pm and then only directed at soft targets.
Get real, people. I wait impatiently to see what wonderful awards await the mayor, councillors, officials and ‘lick-spittle’ business owners who pander to Ugu and its inflated opinion of itself. I will not be spending R130 to buy a ticket.
TONGUE IN CHEEK
Editor: This is actually an Ugu South Coast Tourism event – not Ugu District Municipality – and is aimed at thanking local businesses and people for doing their bit to promote the district as a holiday destination. It is actually lots of fun and many consider it a great initiative.
