Workers, accused subject to dire conditions at court

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It appears that the said sorry state of affairs in the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court’s holding cells is far from being permanently addressed.

According to information obtained through well-placed sources, staff and accused waiting to appear in court are, on a regular basis, forced to contend with damp squalor and an awful stench of raw sewage.

Raw sewage reportedly constantly floods the basement as a result of the sewer pipework leaking.

In the latest dire incident, accused were for almost a week subjected to inhumane conditions after burst and blocked sewer pipes, combined with some mysterious water, reportedly poured into the basement, soaking sections of the holding cells. On July 23, a female accused reportedly suffered breathing complications while waiting in the smelly females’ holding cell, and had to be rushed to hospital for medical attention.

“The situation at court is totally inhumane, and it’s an unbearable situation for both the suspects and us (the staff),” said a source.

The flood problem in the holding cells of the court is not a new problem and workers feel that though they have reported the problem to management on numerous occasions, the Department of Public Works has so far done little to arrest the situation.

“This problem has been going on for years and we are now all frustrated. The holding cells are dirty, with corroded and old broken pipes, peeling paint, unsavoury toilets, damp floors, and the odour emanating from the basement makes the whole facility smell like human waste,” said the source.

One of the workers claims the contractor appointed to clean the facility lacks the necessary cleaning material, something that does little to remedy the unbearable stench which permeates the entire court.

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