GRAAFF-REINET NEWS - Since last year the residents of Hope Street in Graaff-Reinet have been engaging with the Dr Beyers Naude Local Municipality (DBNLM) to raise their concern around the ongoing municipal neglect of their area.

This includes Hope Street, the so-called Cultural Village on the corner of Nuwe, Hope, and North Streets and the area referred to as Nuwestraat at the back of the Hope Street homes.

Hope Street residents handed over a petition to the DBNLM on 11 June describing urgent issues that needed attention as well as proposals for intervention.

The primary issues raised by the residents relate to health, safety and security. The skip at the end of Hope Street has been used by Graaff-Reinet residents and local businesses and this soon resulted in the area being transformed into a local dumpsite. At some point, a local butchery in the vicinity even dumped rotten meat in the skip.

This posed a severe health risk to the community. The Hope Street residents acknowledge that Melvis Pietersen, Manager of DBNLM Community Services, has assisted in attempting to resolve the severe dumping problem, but emphasised that much more is required from the municipality.

The retaining wall between their houses and the street is a safety concern since the fence is broken and it presents a risk to their children as the drop is a couple of meters from the road.

According to Koelie Adams, resident and community leader of Hope Street, two members of her family have already fallen off from the retaining wall but fortunately, they were not hurt. This fence must be repaired as a matter of urgency. People using Hope Street as a shortcut to town also use the steps of the retaining wall as a toilet.

Similarly, the passage between the Hope Street homes and the old Ostrich Meat factory is used as a toilet and the drain in this passage is used as a bin which leads to drain blockages.

It has already been reported to the municipality that the cover has been stolen but the drain remains uncovered. In addition, many people are robbed at knife-point in this passage.

The general abandonment of the Cultural Village also encourages people to use the area inappropriately and as such, it is a major safety and security risk.

Adams says Hope Street is a hotspot for crime. "Whenever a crime is committed in Graaff-Reinet, the police always come to Hope Street first to search for the perpetrators."

The steps of the retaining wall need to be blocked off with gates and the passage between the Hope Street homes and the old ostrich meat factory needs to be fenced.

The lights in the area are constantly vandalised and need to be covered up. The municipality also needs to put out a call for proposals for appropriate use of the Cultural Village. The Cultural Village is currently used by one business only despite numerous proposals by the youth for the use thereof.

The Hope Street residents requested a written response to their petition before the end of June 2021. On 6 July Councilor Thembisa Nonnies acknowledged receipt of the petition on behalf of the DBNLM and committed to respond to their issues soon. To date, there has been no response from DBNLM.

Whilst communities in the DBNLM area continue to struggle for access to basic municipal services, Amos Mcinga, the spokesperson of the Service Delivery Movement, recently exposed misuse of municipal resources by municipal staff and politicians. Powervac has been supplying water to pigs, allegedly belonging to Melvis Pietersen, Manager of DBNLM Community Services and ANC Councillor Xolile Galada, at the expense of the municipality and irrespective of the fact that many residential areas are still crippled by severe water shortages.

Initially, Powervac was responsible for the cleaning of stormwater pipes in the DBNLM, but they are now based at the DBNLM workshop where they provide servicing of municipality vehicles. It is alleged that they do not have a contract with the municipality and that no tender was advertised.

This raises questions around the services of GAP security and other identified service providers in the DBNLM, that needs urgent investigation.

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