THE residents of Riverside squatter camp in Mamelodi East, Tshwane are happy about the newly erected manmade bridge in their kasi.
According to residents, they said a man and his friends have been busy building the bridge to help residents cross easily to the other side of the stream.
The residents applauded the man's hard work and said he needed to be rewarded. They are appealing to anyone who used the bridge to at least give him any amount of money because the man has worked hard.
Elizabeth Machaka (34) told Daily Sun this is hard work and the job the man did was beautiful.
"We can easily cross the stream even when it's raining. Now that there's a bridge, we are happy and our children can cross without fear," she said.
Another resident, Betty Mokwetli (41), said that the bridge is a life saver because when it's raining, they struggled to cross over the stream.
ALSO READ: Voting won't change anything - General!
"The man who built the bridge is a hero. We hope people can thank him financially because he has carried the whole work alone," she said.
She also said the man has love for the community.
Resident Ben Madlala (46) said that he sometimes helped the man in erecting the bridge.
"It's hard work, and we work normally in the mornings and afternoons. I only know the guy as James, and he doesn't have a phone. I also dont know where he lives. I just helped him because I saw that he was doing something good," he said.
The residents said that the man has been building the manmade bridge for over a month.
When Daily Sun was at the bridge, the residents said the man has left. Daily Sun tried to search for the man, but he was nowhere to be found.
City of Tshwane spokesman Lindela Mashigo said: "The city carries out infrastructure development only in settlements that have been formalised. Unfortunately, in this instance, the area is not yet formalised."
