THE City of Ekurhuleni has not paid its rubbish collectors.
The gatvol waste contractors have parked their trucks, and now rubbish is piling up.
The city is now urging residents of affected areas to do it themselves. Even the MMC and officials had to get their hands dirty, removing piling waste in Tembisa on Thursday, 8 February.
MMC for Environment and Waste Management, Councillor Leshaka Manamela led a team to kickstart the intervention through the Clean Your Kasi, Manje! Namhlanje! Campaign.
Affected areas are Norkem Park, Kempton West, Terenure Birch Acres, Tembisa, Olifantsfontein and Midstream, among others.
"We are utilising internal staff and council equipment in an effort to build a capable state that is not dependent on contractors. We thank the residents for their patience, and we are committed to clear the backlog as soon as possible,” Manamela said.
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The city said service providers withdrew last Tuesday, 30 January, due to a misunderstanding around issues of payment.
"The situation has forced the municipality to pull additional resources from other parts of Ekurhuleni to deal with the backlog, and in some areas illegal dumping," the city said.
The focus was mainly on illegal dumping, round collections and litter picking in Phomolong, Winnie Mandela, Birch Acres and Esselen Park.
"These areas were targeted because they are the main entrances into the affected areas," said the city.
The MMC said the intervention will be escalated to all affected areas and work will continue in earnest throughout the weekend.
"The idea is to deal with all the backlogs by Sunday so that we start the new week on a clean slate."
The MMC said while this is happening, the city will continue negotiations with the service provider to speedily resolve any outstanding issues and ensure that waste removal services return to normal.
