WATER shortages, stormwater control challenges, bad internal roads, high unemployment rate, and electricity challenges took centre stage during the Mayoral Imbizo held in Makapanstad, North West, on Friday, 8 March.
Residents said they were sick and tired of empty promises as they continue to struggle.
Speaking to Daily Sun, Martha Mashiane said she was tired of hearing the same stories from leaders.
“They use this platform to come and make empty promises and nothing new. They are here to remind us that we must vote for them on 29 May. This is how I see things,” Martha said.
She further said whenever there was a gathering, abahlali are told about millions that would be spent on certain projects but there's zero service delivery.
Another resident, John Moremi, said they have been waiting for streetlights to be fixed in Carousel View but nothing has happened.
“We're struggling and today we'll make sure the mayor hears us. We've tried many times to meet up with the mayor but someone stops us,” John said.
Another resident, Felani Masemola, said she recently moved to Moretele only to be met with dololo services. The roads are in a bad state, she said. She added that all they are calling for is for the mayor to stick to his promises and not turn imbizo as a political platfrom to get more votes.
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Moretele Local Municipality Mayor, George Manyike, has denied claims that leaders were using mayoral imbizos to campaign for votes.
Responding to the concerns raised, Manyike said the main objective of imbizos was to engage with the community to improve service delivery. He said this wasn't about campaigning but to assess progress made and challenges associated with the improvement of service delivery.
“The Mayoral Imbizo is held in conjunction with the District Thuntsha Lerole programme, which commenced with build-up service delivery activities from last week. Work is continuing across Ward 17 and it includes debushing, patching or filling of potholes and maintenance of highmast lights, among other services,” Manyike said.
“It's important to note that the municipality has, through the Thuntsha Lerole programme, addressed some of the challenges highlighted by communities during the cluster mini-imbizos. Service delivery is our priority. No municipality can ignore challenges faced by its people. Urgent challenges require immediate action. We face a continuous balancing act between urgent needs, come up with short-term solutions while working towards long-term solutions,” he said.
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