From the editor’s desk: No end to municipal issues

IT is no secret that municipal services are practically non-existent. Every week, the SUN receives complaints about service delivery issues that plague our distribution footprint. Complaints range from overgrown verges, potholes, and power and water issues. The list is endless and there seems to be no light at the end of this very dark tunnel.

I remember years ago, while I was still an I’m-going-to-make-this-world-a-better-place-to-live-in kind of journalist at the West Rand office, the municipality would immediately jump into action when they received a query for comment from the paper.

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We would receive almost immediate action and the problem would be fixed within hours. I had direct contact with the spokesperson and they would often let us know when a problem was fixed before it even became an issue.

The spokesperson even asked me on a date once, which I, of course, politely declined. We now struggle to get comment or any kind of action from the city and despite the councillors trying their best to assist where necessary, it seems they are also running into a brick wall most of the time. Calls and emails now go unanswered.

Although the SUN is an excellent method to address these kind of issues because, not only are we trying to hold the municipality accountable for their lack of action, but we also inform our readers what areas should be avoided as it might be a safety concern, there simply is no end to this very dark tunnel.

The city lost the ability to care about the state of which the different areas are in. There seems to be a certain kind of apathy that is difficult to describe and we often receive a generic comment such as “there is no money”, or “it’s been escalated”. This is often coupled by the fact that residents are tasked to keep the area clean themselves.

The golden oldies of my era will probably still remember the government’s Zibi bin mascot? To this day I still sing the lyric, “put it in a Zibi can”, or something of that sort.

Although we still try to keep the city accountable, we also realise that it is not going to happen anytime soon. I predict that repairs and maintenance will escalate as we near the elections next year, it always does.

I still want to change the world to make it a better place and try to instill a pay-it-forward attitude, but I have to admit that I’ve become more cynical. One of my biggest gripes is when I see motorists throwing paper bags out their car windows. Man, that irritates me to no end. Years ago you would face a hefty fine if you were caught doing that.

Despite all this, I live in hope. Hope that things will change for the better. Until next week, be kind to one another.

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