Emfuleni residents suffer indignity as rubbish piles up

Issued by Dady Mollo – DA Emfuleni Central Constituency Political Head
01 Feb 2023 in Press Statements

The DA in Gauteng is outraged that the Emfuleni Local Municipality has neglected to remove trash for four weeks in a row, forcing residents to live in unhygienic and unhealthy conditions. See images here and here.

This failure of service delivery exposes the lie that the ANC in government cares about the dignity of South Africans.

It is alleged that the cause of the current disastrous situation is due to the sheriff seizing property, including refuse trucks, from the Emfuleni Local Municipality offices in Vanderbijlpark due to non-payment of a R5.8 billion debt to Eskom.

DA councillors have been inundated with complaints about the uncollected refuse piling up daily, with residents and businesses expressing fears of serious health hazards brought about by the municipality’s failure.

DA public representatives have repeatedly brought these complaints to the attention of senior management within the municipality, yet the local municipality has, to date, failed to make alternative arrangements to have waste collected and the basic dignity of residents respected and restored.

It is unacceptable that residents have to continue suffering because of the ANC’s inability to show even the most basic respect to South Africans.

The DA calls on the Emfuleni Local Municipality to ensure ringfenced financing for its Eskom obligations to protect residents from service delivery failures.

The DA will continue holding failing municipalities to account by fighting for the right of residents to live with dignity in communities that are safe and clean.