MLM announces R3.5 million service delivery drive

The Jetpatcher team was spotted in Horster Road, Netherland Park, last week, providing some much needed TLC to the dilapidated roadway. This roadway, which had been slated for overhaul in February 2022, fell victim to political infighting at the municipality, and the planned project was put on ice. A section of the roadway has now been patched, although more serious intervention is needed to alleviate the shoddy road conditions in Netherland Park. The Jetpatching initiative takes place periodically as the district vehicle and materials become available, and is a joint venture between Msukaligwa Local Municipality, Gert Sibande District Municipality and other roleplayers. On videos and photos shared by the municipality, the executive mayor, Cllr MP Nkosi, as well as Gert Sibande Distrit Municipality (GSDM) executive mayor, Cllr MW Mngomezulu, also attended the announcement of the so-called “integrated service delivery programme”. Heide Avenue was also targeted by the Jetpatcher team.

According to the municipality, the district will assist with a road resealing initiative to the value of R3.5 million. According to the municipality, the programme will include, amongst others, patching of potholes, cleaning and removing of illegal dumping, disconnecting and removal of illegal electricity cables, unblocking of sewerage main holes, the repair of water pipe leaks and public lighting, such as streetlights and high masts. “Is not that we are concentrating in town only, we are going to rehabilitate Msheveni- and Mthambama Streets in Wesselton in this financial year,” Cllr Nkosi stated. The reaction from the community has been a mixed bag, with some members of the community lauding the attempts by the municipality, while others questioned the workmanship of the projects, claiming that blatant grandstanding by municipal officials impacted the protocol and quality control that should be followed.

Other concerns were also raised that the infrastructure failure such as roadways are not addressed at root level, and is instead just patched to feign effective service delivery and provide short term solutions. At this stage, the timeframe of the project is unknown, and the areas that will receive attention is yet to announced.

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