Ombudsman clinics inform citizens of rights in Protea

The Johannesburg Ombudsman hosted the second leg of its seven-week Citizens Information Clinics Programme, themed Here to Hear You, at the Protea South Multipurpose Hall on February 20.

The campaign will run in seven City of Johannesburg (CoJ) regions to teach residents their constitutional right to equitable and efficient basic municipal services.

Ombudsman Advocate Siduduzi Gumede told the Urban News that his office is a relatively new concept in SA and works akin to the public protector’s office but at a local government level.

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“Effective service delivery is a catalyst for change, and in creating platforms like our clinics, we, as an office of the last instance, can help to bridge the gap between the city and its constituencies and encourage active citizenry.

“Last year, we welcomed thousands of residents from across the city, and we hope to welcome even more this year as we increase our regional footprint and contribute towards accelerating service delivery in the Joburg metro,” said Gumede.

The programme attendees voiced the issues in their communities. Some complaints were about sewage spills, blocked drainage, vandalism and litter.

After hearing the complaints, Gumede inspected the areas identified as having problems – Protea South, City and Glen.

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In an oversight inspection, Protea South Clr Nokuthula Nofemala said that a stormwater drain in one of her wards had been blocked for over seven years, and they were not winning in fixing the issue.

“Two contributing factors make the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) not assist us.

First, it is because people have connected sewer drains to the blocked stormwater drain, and JRA says it only unblocks where there is clean water.

“They are unequipped to work with the sewer. Second, there is illegal dumping by the community; they put in objects that are not supposed to be in the drains,” she said.

Nofemala added that some drains in her ward have never been attended to since she became the councillor in 2021.

The community suffers and complains they are sick, and the drains smell so bad it is unbearable.

In response to the community’s issues and oversight inspection, Gumede said he would escalate their problems to the CoJ, entities and authorities so they could help the people in the city.

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“The problems are not in the offices. They are here in our communities. Leaders must come out, just as they are doing now with the G20 and Youth 20 Summit.

They must remember not to ignore our people in the community because bigger problems need to be addressed,” concluded Gumede.