President Cyril Ramaphosa visited the community of Riverlea on March 14 to have what is called a Sectoral Engagement at the Riverlea Empowerment Centre. Residents from different wards were present to raise their concerns with the President in hopes that their issues would be resolved.

Danny Jordaan, a former member of parliament and president of the South African Football Association handpicked a few residents to ask the President questions, out of a hall full of people only nineteen people had the opportunity to ask the President a question as there were a few residents who were causing chaos at the meeting.

Nonetheless, once the nineteen people asked the questions the President took to the podium to answer.
The first few residents addressed the following issues to the President: Barney Andrews from Geluksdal said: “I’m glad that the programme director referred to Riverlea as a mining town, we see a lot of the mine dumps disappearing due to the rehabilitation of the mines but we have not been benefiting from the mines.

“It’s almost as though a second apartheid is happening at the moment, I’m afraid that our youth and our businesses are not skilled properly to benefit from this process. We see the mines disappearing so rapidly and I would just like to know how we can benefit from the process going forward?”

A resident from Ennerdale spoke about agriculture and the skills required thereof for the youth to participate in the field.

Gladys Gailey from Westbury spoke about her SMME, “My main concern is that I’ve been hearing the word ‘economic empowerment’ – I’m trying on my own to sustain my business.

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Why am I not treated the same as the other counterparts, the buses pass from Coronationville to Soweto and they never come into my place?

I have a heritage site built out of the love for football, other counterparts have their start-up funds but after twenty years I still don’t have mine.”

Denise Wangar from Eldorado Park addressed the issue of women in construction and asked the President when will women start being empowered in the construction industry.

Bishop Ashley Julius said that nothing has been done for the community of Westbury and asked the President: “Why are coloured people being excluded?”

Ursula Pienaar from Newclare added that there’s a lot of transformation happening but no economic development in the former coloured communities, and told the President that his cabinet is not transformed at all.

Randall Alexandre from Riverlea spoke about the health issues with regards to the mining in the area and Chris Isaac from Eldorado Park, a military veteran who is now blind spoke about his struggles, he has been a military veteran for nineteen years and still hasn’t gotten a disabled friendly house for military veterans.

There were more residents from outside of our community who asked questions after these few. The President responded to all nineteen questions and for those residents who did not get the opportunity to ask their questions, they were given the opportunity to write letters to the President and hand them in.