Rewlatch resident: Service delivery is lacking

Vijay Pillay from Rewlatch laments the non-service delivery by the council, especially when it comes to street lights and long grass in the parks.

She lives in Duiker Avenue at the dead end by the park. The street lights have not been working since October last year. She has logged several calls with City Power.

“Most of these tickets are closed without resolving the issues. It is very dangerous at night and we cannot see our surroundings. Last week they came out and fixed the street lights except the one outside my house. The next day, most of the lights were not working again,” she said.

“The grass and weeds in the park are overgrown. When they cut the grass in the park, they do not pick up the grass. When it rains and is windy, this grass is washed into the drains and blown into our houses and yards.

“They do not cut the grass at the dead end, which has become a bush and will soon obstruct my driveway.

“When I spoke to one of the supervisors, he said they do not clean that area because there is rubbish in the bush.

“The people from Pikitup do not pick up any rubbish if it is not in the bin on wheels. Those bins are often stolen when they are left out by people who go to work. People are also dumping their dirt in these overgrown areas and the place is starting to smell, especially when it rains. The next problem will be pests like rats if this continues.

“I have been sending WhatsApp messages to councillor Faeeza Chame since last year and she is of no help. I received several calls asking for my vote last year, but I am so disappointed that she does not even give any feedback. My messages are read long after they are sent and rarely replied to. Twitter and the apps don’t help either.

“What do we do if we do not receive the services we pay for from the City of Johannesburg? Who can hold them accountable? They do not hesitate to disconnect us if we do not pay,” explained Pillay.

Ward 57 councillor Faeeza Chame said she has been in constant communication with Pillay and confirmed that City Parks went out to cut the grass.

“She complained about the street lights and City Power went out to fix them. She was supposed to inform me again that there is still lights that were not fixed,” said Chame.

“However, I must agree that City Power is very slow in fixing the street lights. We sent numerous reference numbers to them and for weeks or months, some of these lights are not attended to.

“City Power also has a backlog with spares because the street lights are vandalised daily. I don’t think they can cope with all the vandalism of our infrastructure. All the law enforcement departments must think of a tangible plan to stop the vandalism. Our community is not safe if these street lights are not working.

“I agree that long grass poses a danger to our residents as it presents a hiding spot for criminals. The new administration has promised to perform better services to our communities,” she said.

COURIER will try to establish what the problem is with these City entities.