Community members said that the municipality has violated its constitutional obligation in terms of chapter 7 section 152(1) of the Constitution
FED-UP community members in Warrenton embarked on a peaceful service delivery march to the police station, Transnet and the Magareng Local Municipality to hand over their memorandum of demands yesterday.
The march was triggered by the endless concerns with regard to poor service delivery by the municipality.
The community feels frustrated and accuses the municipality of disregarding them.
Community members said that the municipality has violated its constitutional obligation in terms of chapter 7 section 152(1) of the Constitution.
The memorandum was accepted by Transnet depo manager Peter Gorewang, the Station Commander, Zinekele Ngwenya, at Ikhutseng police station, and Chesyn America at the municipality.
The community feels that Transnet is not doing enough in empowering the youth by providing jobs.
The community is calling for the disbandment of the whole council and for the municipal manager, Keaoleboga Gaborone, to be removed with immediate effect.
They accuse Gaborone of failing to hold those who have violated the law accountable.
They further demand a full report on the appointment of the chief financial officer (CFO), Malebogo Motswaledi.
One of the march organisers, Dira Polore, said that allegations were made that Motswaledi was appointed after serving in an internship programme at the municipality, and that her post was not advertised.
They also demanded free basic services like clean water and electricity, which they say they were promised by the ruling party during the 2016 local elections campaign.
The marchers further demanded a detailed report on the National Lottery Funding that was allocated to the municipality.
They alleged that the funds were paid into the municipality account for the renovation of the Ikhutseng and Warrenvale stadium.
The community also demands transparency of all funding provided to the municipality.
They also want the auditor-general’s report on the municipality’s expenditure, and action to be taken regarding all discrepancies revealed in the report
“We want the report because the municipality abuses funds and we do not see any progress in terms of service delivery,” said one of the other organisers, Kgosietsile Motingwe.
They have also demanded detailed reports on all incomplete projects, namely Agripark, the peanuts and oil factory, roads in the Chris Hani section and the fixing of street lights in Ikhutseng.
They also want details on the funding which was apparently provided by Petra Diamonds for the Itireleng Disability Centre, and details about the mayor’s bursary fund, including the criteria used to select beneficiaries.
They demand the immediate upgrade of the Warrenton hospital after it was downgraded to a Community Health Centre (CHC) without community consultation and for the health inspector reports to be made public.
An additional high school was also on the list of demands.
They further called for a socio-economic contribution from foreign-owned shops.
The municipality has been given seven days to respond to the memorandum.
