Residents cry foul over poor service delivery
Hundreds of disgruntled residents of Joe Slovo informal settlement took to the streets to protest again poor service delivery on Thursday morning, April 24.
During the protest, burning tyres, rocks and other objects were used to barricade St Anthony’s Road, preventing vehicles from passing.
According to one of the community leaders, Nkosivumile Nkathazo, they wanted to vent their anger and dissatisfaction with the municipality’s failure to deliver on all the promises it made to improve the lives of residents of the area.
“We were promised high mast lights, solar panels and installation of stormwater drain system in St Anthony’s Road to prevent flooding in the area, but none of these has happened.” says Nkathazo.
A large contingent of police officers from EMPD and various SAPS police stations was deployed to the area, and managed to bring the situation under control.
Protesters did not clash with police, and nobody was injured during the protest.
With a strong police escort, the protesters marched to the Boksburg Civic Centre to hand over a memorandum to mayor Mondli Gungubele’s attention.
Corporate and Shared Services MMC, Clr Phelisa Nkunjana, publicly received the memo from the unhappy residents, on behalf of the mayor.
She was accompanied by Corporate and Shared Services chairperson Clr Zenzile Nxeci.
Protesters were told that they must expect a response to their demands within seven days.
The thousands residents of the area live in shacks without power, and share a single tap among dozens of households.
Traffic came to a standstill in parts of Boksburg, with Commissioner and Market streets temporally closed.
Shops along Commissioner and Market streets were shut down as they feared for their lives and property, according to one of the shop owners.
No shops were looted. Police have been on high alert throughout the whole action, protected property and ensured safety.
The protest was the latest in a series of riots that rocked parts of Boksburg where service delivery has been deteriorating. A couple of months ago, residents of Comet also took their grievances to the streets, as they barricaded Rondebult Road, demanding better services from the metro.
