Picture: Danie van der Lith
THE ROODEPAN protest action was suspended temporarily on Friday following the short-term interventions made by the Sol Plaatje Municipality on Friday and promises made to the protesters.
The Executive mayor of Sol Plaatje Municipality, Patrick Mabilo and the Provincial Rapid Response Team met with the protesters at the Roodepan Multipurpose Centre on Thursday afternoon where he responded to their memorandum.
He was accompanied by mayoral team, MEC of Health Maruping Lekwene and MEC of Transport, Safety and Liaison Nontobeko Vilakazi.
The community of Roodepan, Lethabo Park, Ivory Park and Gregory Park were also updated on the progress made on their highlighted service delivery challenges.
On Friday morning the municipality’s infrastructure and technical teams arrived with trucks and a TLB and started clearing the sewage spillage and the flooding as well as filling the surface of the affected yards with soil.
The municipality promised that the scraping of roads will be prioritised once the weather is favourable and it will continuously ensure that roads are accessible.
Assessments would also be made and an appropriate action plan will be implemented regarding the building of roads.
The municipality indicated that a contractor has been appointed to do repairs on the leaking Camelia pump station which fell prey to vandalism.
Spokesperson for the office of the mayor, Persome Oliphant indicated that the contractor has already started with the repair work
The municipality vowed to prioritise electrification in Lethabo Park as part of the ongoing programme which is currently under way in Lerato Park.
It is reported that the same project will be rolled out in all four wards within the greater Roodepan area.
“The municipality anticipates the electrification of these four wards, including Lethabo Park before the end of the year, pending finalisation of an outstanding township establishment,” explained Oliphant.
The water and sanitation project commenced in Ivory Park after a contractor was appointed by the department of Cooperative Governance, Human Settlement and Traditional Affairs (Coghsta).
According to the municipality, disputes between the contractor and subcontractor led to the stalling of the project.
“The matter is receiving attention by the department to resolve the impasse.
“Upon conclusion of this phase in Ivory Park, the project will automatically extend to Lethabo Park.”
The Sol Plaatje Municipality encouraged the community to cooperate with the municipality and the local police in identifying ghost shacks and reporting any criminal activity to the relevant authorities with immediate effect.
The municipality promised to audit all occupants of informal settlements in the area and make a determination of need-based in internal processes.
A promise was made that an electrical team will be dispatched to attend to the repair of the Gregory Park street lights and it will be working again on March 29 2021.
The municipality indicated that internal processes will be undertaken for all informal settlements to put mechanisms in place to ensure refuse collection takes place regularly.
“The municipality will take stock of what is available (skip bins) at the municipal workshop and that will be provided to informal settlements.”
In terms of job creation, Oliphant pointed out that government, including municipalities, is responsible for creating a climate where growth and development can take place; and jobs created in partnership with the private sector.
“It is in this context that creation of jobs for youth be understood to be a collaborative effort with various stakeholders at all levels of government,” said Oliphant.