Children, the elderly, the sick and pregnant women are travelling by boat from Waldeck’s Plant so that they can attend school, work or access medical care in Barkly West.
CHILDREN, the elderly, the sick and pregnant women are travelling by boat from Waldeck’s Plant so that they can attend school, work or access medical care in Barkly West.
EFF councillor at Dikgatlong Municipality, Lefa Leeuw said that children had to leave by boat at around 6am in the morning to catch a bus in Gong Gong so that they could attend school in Barkly West.
“Community members pay R10 per trip and have to contend with the heat, cold and rain. EFF provincial secretary Shadrack Thlaole and myself experienced first-hand the inhumane and treacherous trip that residents have to endure daily,” said Leeuw.
He added that the boat leaked and was not a safe mode of transport.
“There is no insurance to cover any accident or injury, while there are no life jackets for children to prevent them from drowning. Our children are not safe and it is only a matter of time before something tragic happens,” he warned.
Leeuw added that a bridge was supposed to have been built so that road travel would be possible, but it was never constructed.
“Pleas have been made to provincial government to assist in ensure that safety precautions are taken, but nothing happened. Government officials are driving luxury vehicles while residents have been subjected to travelling in these primitive conditions for years. It is only through God’s mercy that there have been no fatalities. Perhaps something drastic needs to happen before any action is taken.”
Northern Cape Department of Roads and Public Works spokesperson Crystal Robertson said the construction of the bridge was the initiative of the owner of a farm in the Barkly West district about 10 years ago.
