MyPE

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Bedford on brink of collapse

By

Dear MyPE

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality has written to the MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Fikile Xasa, as well as the national Minister for COGTA, Zweli Mkhize, to urgently intervene to urgently intervene to save the town of Bedford from complete collapse due to poor service delivery.

The town of Bedford, which falls under the Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality (RMLM), has since October 2017 been subjected to bouts of public protests by residents angry at the poor administration by the local ANC government.

Residents of Bedford have taken to the streets due to the municipality’s track record of poor service delivery, corruption, nepotism and factionalism. They are also upset at the slow pace of housing rectification and allocation of jobs, which they feel are reserved for family and friends of their Ward Councillor. (see attached pictures here and here )

The failure of the Mayor of RMLM, Bandile Ketelo and the Municipal Manager, Ms Unathi Malinzi to address these grievances, has led to anarchy. Week after week enraged residents are burning tyres and blocking off streets.

Services – like refuse collection – and infrastructure maintenance have not been delivered for several months. The Municipal offices have been forcibly closed by protesters since early April and Municipal staff prevented from coming to work.

Management this week arranged for the deployment of a large South African Police Service (SAPS) contingent, but the community prevented the offices being opened for business.

Other than a brief engagement with the protesters in January 2018, the Mayor has been noticeably absent.

I previously wrote to MEC Xasa on 6 September 2017 and 9 May and 11 June 2018, but received no response or acknowledgement. The MEC addressed the community on 1 May and several promises were made, but nothing has materialised.

Recently several meetings were held between the Mayor, Municipal Manager, Speaker and members of the Bedford Resident’s Association in an effort to resolve the problem. Numerous letters and e-mails have also been sent to the Mayor. These requests for his intervention have fallen on deaf ears.

The residents of Bedford deserve better and it is only a DA government that can bring the change necessary to improve their lives and save this town from total collapse.

Regards

Cllr Cecilia Auld
PR Councillor Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality

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Alan Straton

Chief Cook, Bottle Washer and Broom Mechanic at MyPE
Passionate about Port Elizabeth and definitely NOT packing for Perth. Alan's ethos is epitomised in the words of Nelson Mandela; "I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." See more articles by Alan.