Sinkhole between Bapsfontein and Cullinan Road not fixed yet overruns by R92 000

The lives of motorists and pedestrians using the provincial road D483 between Bapsfontein and D713 Cullinan are in danger because the sinkhole has not been fixed.

The huge sinkhole has surfaced in the middle of the road. It stretches across the two lanes, which affects on and off-going traffic. This is a major risk that can result in deadly accidents. Several trucks that use this road to transport goods have suffered severe damage.

The appointed contractor has failed to complete the project within the stipulated timeframes, which resulted in incurring an extra R92 000.

Furthermore, the Auditor General (AG) found in the 2022/2023 annual report for the Gauteng Department of Roads and Logistics that there are discrepancies in the payments to the service provider and that penalties were not imposed.

Failure to penalise the contractor is setting the wrong precedent, as the contractor will only keep on disregarding the timelines that are put in place to complete the project.

The affected community where the road is situated is petitioning the department to fix the road urgently.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will be engaging the petitions committee in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL) to assess the progress of the petition and urgently seek interventions to ensure that the sinkhole is fixed. We will also be tabling questions to the MEC for Roads and Logistics, Kedibone Diale, to ascertain when the sinkhole will be fixed and whether the contractor will be blacklisted for failing to complete the project.

No housing plan in place for 148 Khutsong families affected by the sinkhole

There are 148 families in Khutsong, Merafong Local Municipality, affected by sinkholes and facing an uncertain future because the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) has no plan to relocate them.

These families must be relocated from their current homes because of the sinkhole plaguing the area, which has also affected Relebogile High School, where a sinkhole appeared in the school premises in February.

The concerned residents have informed the DA that the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) have not yet engaged them about the proposed relocation plan.

This is unacceptable because the residents should be adequately informed and provided with sufficient time to relocate.

Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the GPG to engage with residents on their proposed relocation to ensure that they reach an amicable decision.

The DA proposes that the government must do the following as part of the relocation process:
1. Educate residents about the dangers of sinkholes.
2. Engage the residents on the issues of relocation on how it will change their lives.
3. The relocation process must be transparent, and the migration plan should contain timelines.

The DA will monitor the proposed relocation process to ensure the residents are well-informed and agree to the relocation plan for their own safety.

Is Merafong cash-cowing their sinkhole problem?

by Ina Cilliers MPL – DA Constituency Head Merafong

This past week the DA conducted a public feedback meeting with community members affected by the sinkhole in Khutsong that razed several houses and threatens the safety of the broader community.

This comes after a reply to written questions indicating that a whopping R184 million has already been allocated to rehabilitate several sinkholes in the Merafong Municipality that is being caused by unattended water leaks.

Of particular concern is that it is unclear how the funds are being spent.

The sinkhole in Khutsong is still not rehabilitated, and water from nearby leaks is gushing freely into the sinkhole.

The community members indicated a complete breakdown of the trust relationship with Merafong Municipality over the handling of this entire matter.

Whilst the affected families are facing an uncertain future, the reply indicates that the only long-term solution is to re-locate the entire community to a new 500 house RDP development that has not yet gotten off the ground.

Whilst the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) admits that sinkholes are caused by “sustained ingress of water into ground spaces, poorly managed surface water drainage systems, and aging asbestos water pipes”, the Municipality has no plans to wage a war on leaks. Instead, it is happy to keep asking for more and more funds to rehabilitate sinkholes that they themselves have caused.

The municipality already faces a PAIA application from the DA over the detailed expenditure on this disaster, a request they have been ignoring with impunity.

The affected community members have now asked the DA to take up the matter with the new MEC for Human Settlements and COGTA, Uhuru Moila directly.

It is a sign of the shocking indifference of the ruling ANC that this entirely preventable situation is being used to milk the South African taxpayer.

The DA will leave no stone unturned to uncover and expose the real situation and the daily struggle of this community until a long term, sustainable resolution is achieved.

In addition we will also be calling for an on-site visit by the Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements and COGTA to demand answers as to how R184m was spent.

The residents of Merafong desperately need the Total Change only the DA can bring.

Sinkholes In Khutsong Avoidable If Council Sorts Out Water Leaks

Sinkholes in Khutsong

The growing number of sinkholes in Khutsong could be mitigated if the ANC-led council in Merafong took decisive action to curb the growing number of water leaks in the municipality.

Houses in the area are built on dolomitic land which is susceptible to developing sinkholes when exposed to water over sustained periods of time.

The high number of water leaks in Merafong is a major contributing factor to this problem. In Khutsong last year, the municipality failed to repair a burst water pipe for 6 weeks, losing more than 1.6 million litres of fresh water for the period.

Gauteng Disaster Management Fund

Last week, the Merafong Municipality declared the area a disaster zone – but the municipality has not yet received any funding from the Gauteng Disaster Management Fund.

I will question Gauteng MEC for Cooperative Governance, Paul Mashatile, as to when this funding will be made available to ensure that the residents of Khutsong and other affected areas are assisted during this difficult period.

 

 

 

Media Enquiries:

Ina Cilliers MPL

DA DA Constituency Head: Merafong 

060 556 4344

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Sinkhole inside RDP home: DA escalates issue to Gauteng Legislature as EMM fails to assist

A resident living in Etwatwa, Ekurhuleni has been living with a sinkhole in his RDP house for the past five years.

Sphiwe Mokwena, approached the DA after both the previous and current local ANC ward councillor and Ekurhuleni Metro failed to assist him, despite reporting the sinkhole in 2010.

A sinkhole formed in the living room of Sphiwe’s RDP house five years ago, forcing him and his family to move out of their home.

Sphiwe’s family was subsequently forced to rent two shacks – one for his parents and one for the children.

In 2010, the Mokwena family reported this issue to the previous local ANC councillor who gave the family cement to cover the hole but this did not resolve the problem.

Since then the family have not heard from the previous councillor and the current councillor, Masele Madihlaba, have also done nothing to assist the Mokwena family despite this issue being covered in the media last year.

The sinkhole now takes up half of the living room and has caused cracks to form in different parts of the house.

Last September (2014/09/26), the issue was reported in the Daily Sun and Ekurhuleni Metro Spokesperson, Themba Gadebe was quoted in the story saying that the municipality would send officials to assess the sinkhole. He stated: “We are determined to assist the Mokwena family. We don’t want any loss of life.”

Yet, more than a year later, Mr Gadebe has failed to deliver on his promise. Officials have not come to assess the sinkhole and the Mokwena family still live in shacks because their home is unsafe to live in.

It is unacceptable that the Ekurhuleni municipality has failed to address this matter over the past five years.

In my capacity as Springs/Daveyton Constituency Head I will be writing to the Ekurhuleni MMC for Human Settlements, Aubrey Nxumalo and request that he provides answers on the following questions:

  1. Why has the municipality failed to fix this problem since the issue was reported in 2010;
  2. What steps will the municipality take to assist the Mokwena family;
  3. Whether a site and soil review was conducted to ensure that the land was suitable to build on prior to the RDP homes being built; and
  4. Are the surrounding RDP homes also at risk of being affected by a similar problem?

Due to the Ekurhuleni Metro failing to properly address this issue for the past five years, I will also write to the MEC for Human Settlements, Jacob Mamabolo in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature asking his department to investigate this issue as a matter of urgency.

It is crucial that the municipality assist the Mokwena family immediately so that they can move back into their home and that officials who have failed to take action over the past five years are held accountable.

Media Enquiries

Ashor Sarupen MPL

DA Springs-Daveyton Constituency Head

076 334 5147

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Merafong Municipality On The Verge Of Financial Collapse

Billing System Offline

The Merafong municipality is on the verge of financial collapse.  For the past three months its billing system has been offline, rendering it unable to collect revenue from debtors.

In a council meeting held on 23 July it was revealed that:

  • As of end June 2015 the municipality has been running a deficit of R33.7 million;
  • Outstanding debtors increased by almost R103 million and now stands at R758 million;
  • Outstanding creditors amounted to over R70 million, of which R55 million is from trade creditors- affecting businesses that do business with the municipality.
  • In the past few months the municipality experienced massive water infrastructure failures, as unattended leaks have caused sinkholes to appear – severely compromising water delivery;
  • Currently Merafong loses up to 52% of its water; and
  • It is estimated that it would cost around R900 million to repair water infrastructure.

Quality of Life

The fact is that Merafong has completely lost the ability to manage its finances and provide quality services to its residents.

If left unchecked, the municipality will soon rack up phenomenal debts with bulk water and electricity suppliers, further compromising people’s quality of life.

While Cooperative Governance MEC Jacob Mamabolo refuses to implement a Section 139(1)(b) intervention, the fact is that the council can and should request assistance in terms of existing legislation.

To this end the DA Merafong caucus leader, Cllr Blackie Zwart, will table a motion calling on council to resolve to request assistance from the West Rand District Municipality and cooperative governance MEC Jacob Mamabolo in terms of:

  • Section 155 of the Constitution;
  • Section 105 of the Municipal Structures Act; and
  • Sections 83 and 88 of the Municipal Systems Act.

The DA will continue to carry out our mandate of oversight and ensure that residents and communities across the Merafong municipality receive quality and decent service delivery.

 

Media Enquiries:

Ina Cilliers MPL

DA Gauteng Constituency Head – Merafong

060 556 4344

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Merafong’s Mega Sinkhole still Endangering Motorists

The R500 in MerafongIna Cilliers DA Constituency Head: Merafong

The massive sinkhole on the R500 in Merafong has still not been repaired despite assurances from Gauteng Roads and Transport MEC, Ismail Vadi, that the issue would be dealt with as a matter of urgency.

In July 2014, MEC Vadi indicated that this sinkhole would be repaired by September 2014.

To date, the sinkhole has not been attended to by the Department.

Alternate Route in Disrepair

As time goes by, the alternate route around the sinkhole has fallen in to disrepair due to the high volume of traffic and farming vehicles that make use of this route daily.

In reply to questions I posed to the MEC, it is clear that this issue will not be resolved any time soon.

Why so long MEC Vadi

MEC Vadi states that this issue will be resolved before the end of the current financial year – at an estimated cost of R8 million.

It is unacceptable that the department has dragged its heels on this issue – unnecessarily placing motorists in harm’s way.

I will write to the MEC and demand this issue be prioritised.

Media enquiries:
Ina Cilliers MPL
DA Constituency Head for Merafong
060 556 4344

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