Municipality shrugs off responsibility as AfriForum removes Christiana’s refuse for a week
The Lekwa-Teemane Local Municipality has failed to provide refuse removal services in Christiana and other areas for nearly two weeks because its refuse collection truck was sent for repairs. According to AfriForum, it is outrageous for the Municipality to expect residents to allow refuse to accumulate indefinitely on their properties. AfriForum’s Christiana branch therefore stepped in over the past week and began collecting residents’ refuse. The branch has already collected and removed approximately five truckloads of refuse.
“The Municipality has a responsibility to provide the services residents pay for on a regular and reliable basis, regardless of the challenges it faces. Its failure to make alternative arrangements to ensure continued service delivery constitutes a breach of its obligations towards residents,” says Jp Nel, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for Stellaland.
In a letter, AfriForum requests that the Municipality draw up a clear plan outlining how alternative refuse removal services will be implemented immediately, when normal service delivery will resume and what measures will be introduced to prevent similar disruptions in future.
AfriForum further requests that the Municipality explore the benefits of signing a Memorandum of Understanding with AfriForum. Such an agreement could provide a basis for cooperation to address service delivery problems in a practical manner and ensure that residents receive the services to which they are entitled.
“The community cannot continually bear the consequences of inadequate service delivery. Refuse removal is an essential municipal service that directly affects residents’ quality of life and health. AfriForum expects the Municipality to urgently present a concrete plan to prevent the affected areas from turning into enormous rubbish dumps,” says Nel.
AfriForum is willing to work with the Municipality to find practical solutions to the community’s service delivery problems. However, the organisation emphasises that cooperation must be accompanied by accountability and a clear commitment to sustainable service delivery.
The civil rights organisation will continue to put pressure on the Municipality to ensure that service delivery continues.
Contact Jp Nel on 081 217 1627 to join AfriForum and make a tangible difference in your town.
