SAHRC engages Mpumalanga communities on service delivery complaints

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Communities under the Chief Albert Luthuli Municipality in Mpumalanga have once again raised service delivery complaints with the South African Human Right Commission (SAHRC).

The commission representatives engaged residents of Lochiel and eNhlazatshe as a follow up to an investigative inquiry into service delivery challenges within municipalities conducted last year.

The SAHRC has embarked on a week – long site inspections within the local municipalities of Gert Sibande and Nkangala in Mpumalanga. Teams of investigators have been spread across the two district municipalities trying to verify the complaints raised with the commission late last year.

Communities were invited to a dialogue following sporadic protest actions in different communities.

Lack of clean drinking water and poor road infrastructure remain among the complaints raised with the commission.

“Is the road mostly cars can’t go here taxis  and the police if they want fetch someone here they can’t. Even the ambulance they can’t  help people who are sick or pregnant to take them to hospital. They can’t go on this road because the holes are too big.

We want them to fix the roads because we can’t continue like this.”

“In our community we are facing the problem about water because many section haven’t got water.”

Living conditions

The SAHRC promised to hold authorities accountable. Provincial Deputy Commissioner Shirley Mlombo says authorities will be given space to address the complaints.

“So we expect once we have issued this directive in terms what has to happen is to remedy the issues. We expect that municipalities and other government functions would actually act and implement those directives. Of course  if they don’t implement there are steps that the commission  can take. Those steps do include court action if they are not complying.”

The Human Rights Commission says the living conditions of some residents especially in the previously disadvantaged communities remain a cause of concern.

Mlombo elaborates. “And the specific issues the communities have been raising with us constantly over the years are issues to access to water, issues of access to sanitation that’s what we are finding. And what we are finding on the ground you know is the same issues. If they are not implemented there are steps the commission can take to ensure that those directives are enforced and are complied with by the relevant officials.”

The commission is expected to wrap its oversight investigations by the end of the week .

2 years ago