Despite failing service delivery by the ANC led Tshwane Council, local ANC Ward 61 Councillor, Naeem Patel not only continues to ‘hide’ the incompetency of the ANC but continues to promote the ANC Councillors responsible to ensure that effective service delivery is carried out.
One of Patel’s die hard role models, Tshwane Deputy Mayor, Eugene Modise of the ANC who is accused of receiving hundreds of millions through corrupt tenders, is often showcased by Patel during local community events, despite the ANC failing the community on service delivery.
This follows almost each week residents complaining of both Patel and the Tshwane Council concerning poor service delivery. In one of the latest complaints, residents of Alleta Street in Erasmia, complained to the Laudium Sun about a blocked manhole sewage leak that has been ongoing for more than a week. The leak which started the previous Tuesday (August 18), has still not been attended to, despite residents reporting the leakage to the Council and the office of Cllr Patel.
Asif Bhatt of Alleta Street, told the Laudium Sun, “I am extremely frustrated with what I believe is the `Council’s negligence in our area. The sewage leak has been ongoing for more than a week and we have reported the problem to the council, but until now, no one from the Council has come to attend to the matter. This is not a normal water leakage. This is dirty, stinky sewage running down the street and in front of our houses. The leakage has created an unpleasant environment for residents and the foul smell has become extremely difficult to deal with. We should not have to live with this kind of problem for days, while waiting for the authorities to respond. I cannot believe that ANC Councillor Patel and the ANC Council we voted for and entrusted to provide basic services to our community, can neglect residents in this manner. We voted for them because we expected them to serve the community, respond to complaints and make sure that basic services are delivered properly. When residents report a serious sewage problem and no one comes to attend to it, this makes us question whether our concerns are being taken seriously. The present Council must go now because residents are tired of what we see as empty promises, poor performance, a lack of proper service delivery and even corruption. We have heard enough promises and we cannot go on like this for another five years of bad service. What we need now is action. We need people in positions of responsibility who will actually listen to residents and respond when there are problems on our streets. I believe the current Council has failed to meet the expectations of many residents and residents need to think carefully about the future of our community. We need a new Council that can properly manage the area, communicate with residents and make sure that basic services are attended to without unnecessary delays. The sewage leak must be fixed immediately. We cannot continue living with this problem and the odour that comes with it. It is affecting the quality of life in our area and residents are concerned about the possible impact on their health and the general cleanliness of the environment. We are not asking for anything unreasonable. We are simply asking the Council to attend to a reported leaking sewage problem and fix it.”
Pieter Coetzer, also of Alleta Street, told the Laudium Sun, “I am honestly at a loss for words when it comes to the way this Tshwane Council is handling problems in our community. I do not want to make statements that could put me in a difficult position, but residents have every right to question why a sewage leak has been allowed to continue for so long without being attended to. This is not a minor issue that residents can simply ignore. It is a serious service delivery problem in a residential area and the people living nearby are the ones who have to deal with the consequences every day. We should not be expected to accept this as normal. What makes the situation even more frustrating is that residents are the people who elected the local Councillor and placed their trust in the leadership of the area. We voted because we believed that the people elected would represent our interests and make sure that our concerns were taken seriously. When basic problems are not attended to, residents naturally begin to question whether that trust has been respected. I feel the pain of the people of Erasmia because we are the ones living here and experiencing these problems first hand. It is easy for officials to speak about service delivery, but residents judge the situation by what they see happening on their own streets. When a problem remains unresolved, it creates frustration and leaves people feeling that their voices are not being heard. We also have to accept that we played a part in choosing the leadership that is currently responsible for serving our community. We went to the polls, we made our choices and we expected those choices to bring better service delivery. That is why residents are now so disappointed when they see problems continuing without a proper response. The current level of service delivery in our community is simply not good enough. Residents are tired of raising concerns and waiting for action. We need a Council that understands the everyday challenges faced by the people of Erasmia and responds to those challenges with urgency and accountability.”
