City council in dilemma over widow’s E0.5m claim
MBABANE – Following a hailstorm that destroyed part of her house on August 29, 2023, widow and pensioner Nonkululeko Nsibande must have become optimistic when she was visited by officials from the Municipal Council of Mbabane the following day.
The house is located just a few metres from the Mbabane Golf Course and during the storm, a big gum tree damaged the roof of the lounge and one bedroom as well as a wall that separates the two rooms.
Her hopes might have grown when the municipality advised her to write and submit a letter and quotations so that she could get assistance to fix the house that had for years become a home to her.
Little did the 60-year-old know that months would pass with her still sleeping in the same house that has now developed cracks in almost all the rooms.
This reporter visited the woman at her house and upon entry; she was welcomed by visibly cracked walls inside the kitchen and towards the lounge.
SEVEN BUCKETS
Inside the lounge there are about seven buckets which she said she had been using during the recent rainy days.
The reason, she said, was because the damaged roof leaked during the rainy days due to that some material she received from Baphalali Eswatini Red Cross Society would now and again be blown away by storms.
“I have to pay about E150 for people to put back the plastic material which gets blows off on windy days. They now use me as a money-making scheme. Many people have been coming here saying they will assist me. They take pictures and go. I am even tired of taking the pictures and having people walk in and out of my home. Sometimes I worry that they could be criminals,” she said.
As we continue with the walk inside the house, she pointed to household items that are rotting including a wardrobe in one of the rooms.
Next to it is what was once a bookshelf and has now changed colour following that it has been affected by the rains as it is placed under one of the leaks.
Also, damaged windows that have not been fixed are visible in the three affected rooms.
One of the damaged windows is well positioned to show the outside area of the house and a few metres from it lays the big tree that caused all the damage.
“That is where the tree was. It has always been close to the window and I reported this many times to the municipality. Many nights when it is windy I wake up at night in fear. At some point, I contemplated going to report to the police. Even my late husband requested the municipality to cut the trees that are closer to the house but those requests fell on deaf ears,” she alleged.
Narrating her story, she said after the hailstorm, officers from the municipality responded immediately after she reported.
INSURANCE ENTITY
She said they advised her that they had engaged the insurance entity that was to facilitate the funds and advised her to prepare three quotations, which she did.
Nsibande said she was now confused as to why there was a delay and if the municipality had changed its mind about assisting her with fixing her house.
“It is January now and if the municipality had a changed of plan, I think they would have informed me last year. I have endured difficult time in the past few months due to rains. By asking me to write a letter and do the quotations I believe the municipality was saying that it was taking responsibility. I celebrated Christmas in a house that has rotting items and it is not fair,” she said.
Nsibande claimed that the officers did return again recently after the rains caused havoc in several parts of the country.
She highlighted that she did not necessarily want to be given money in cash, but all she wanted was to have her house fixed.
It should be noted that during an extraordinary meeting held recently, the council recounted that the city of Mbabane experienced a windstorm on the event of the general elections which caused some destruction on building structures, trees and road signs.
It was stated in the report that eight properties were damaged by fallen trees and formally reported to the municipality in September 2023.
It was mentioned that a claim was lodged for about eight damaged properties with the insurers, as per the provisions of the council’s Public Liability Insurance.
One of the properties that experienced a major damage belongs to the widow and is located on Plot 645, Farm 2, which is located along the Samora Machel Road near Golf Course Ward 5.
Nsibande, as stated in the report, is said to have approached the council several times seeking assistance after having sources three quotations which ranged between E553 000 and E581 000.
PROCESSED TIMEOUSLY
The council, the report mentioned, was still engaging the insurers to ensure that the claim was processed timeously but that, however; there was an indication that the claim was not likely to be supported.
“The council has since engaged the city engineer to assess the damage and source other quotations using the municipality’s service providers. The city engineer has confirmed that even after the rainy season, the estimated cost of repair is in that range,” reads part of the report.
It was highlighted that the management of the municipality was engaging the insurers since the case had the potential to attract some negative publicity.
“However, so far the insurers are not
prepared to honour the claim, hence the council is not able to honour the request to fix the damaged properties,” reads part of the report.
As per the procedure of council meetings, a resolution was taken by the councillors that a court order would help solve the issue.
This publication has gathered that the insurance company has asked for evidence that the municipality was indeed responsible for the damage.
ASSIST THE WOMAN
It has been gathered that effort is being made to get lawyers who will assist the woman without charging her.
Meanwhile, the Urban Government Act of 1969 is not clear on what should happen whenever such disasters occur.
Instead, Section 73 of the Act reads, “Any person who is the owner of any immovable property which is injuriously affected by the execution of any works under sections 66, 72 or Section 67(4) (b) or (c) shall be entitled to recover as compensation from the council executing such works the amount by which the value of such property has diminished or the amount of any damage suffered by the owner not amounting to a diminution in value.”
It also states that no person shall be entitled to receive any compensation unless he or she lodges the claim with the council within six months of the date of completion of the works.
INTERNATIONAL ASSIGNMENT
Efforts to get a comment from the Mayor, Vusi Tembe, were not successful as he was reportedly away on an international assignment.
Meanwhile, a ratepayer who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the municipality was responsible for the maintenance of the city and, therefore, needed to assist in fixing the damaged house.
“Also, the trees belong to the municipality. There is a clear expectation that disasters could happen anytime and the municipality must have a plan on what it will do,” he said.