The Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements has slammed the destruction of toilets by vandals in Moqhaka local municipality, Free State.
The Committee’s reaction came after this week’s meeting with the Executive Mayor of Moqhaka Local Municipality, Mr Jahidi Mohapi, on the progress made in implementing recommendations by the Human Rights Commission to enclose the 1 831 open latrines in Rammulotsi, Viljoenskroon.
The Executive Mayor said that they had encountered numerous challenges ranging from lack of adequate funding to community members intentionally demolishing the existing structures with the hope of getting new Structures. There were also reports of political interference, with allegations that councillors are instigating the problem. Residents were allegedly told to knock down the toilets in order to stifle the completion of the project for political point scoring.
The Committee called this “a deplorable act”, and said the municipality should find ways to hold to account all those found to have been involved in this. The Committee said it took exception to the use of people’s right to dignity to score political points and said this was “cheap politicking that should not be allowed in our communities.” The Committee also calls for the community to be vigilant against destructive forces against efforts to bring better services to the people.
In addition to the alleged instigation, the Mayor said there were some opportunistic residents who lived in RDP houses with inside toilets, plus one outside, who had been seen demolishing the outside structures in the hope of getting new ones, to better accommodate their backyard dwellers. Others were said to have demolished toilets and used the bricks to construct braai structures.
Mr Mohapi added that this unacceptable practice meant the municipality had to enclose an additional 253 toilets demolished by residents. The extra work was done, but it resulted in the completion date having to be postponed.
The Human Rights Commission, in a media statement on 10 April 2013, expressed satisfaction with the results and instructed the municipality to enclose the two remaining toilets.
The Committee welcomed the initiative by the Moqhaka local municipality, which is aimed at enacting bylaws against the deliberate destruction of toilets, and it called on the municipality to do everything possible to bring the perpetrators to book.
For media enquiries and interviews with the Chairperson, please contact:
Malatswa Evans Molepo, Parliamentary Communication Services
Cell: 073 297 1914
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E-mail: mmolepo@parliament.gov.za
