Komani’s huge potential
I HAVE been living in Queenstown Komani for ± 4 years, moving here from the southern Cape, and I love it! My work affords me the opportunity to travel across the Eastern Cape and talk to people of all religions, colours, creeds and social standing, and see how different groups of South Africans live, operate, shop, socialise, differ and accept the daily offerings of life. Also to learn about their feelings and fears after the many promises made to them have failed to be executed.
Why is this? Why for instance, has one of my young colleagues living in a township had to live for almost 20 years with raw sewage running near his bedroom window and awake each day not knowing what fresh air smells like?
Why does a colleague sharing a house with his aged grandmother in Ezebeleni have to go without water and sometimes electricity for days on end?
Why, if I fetch him for an after-hours assignment do I encounter potholes as large as craters, streets and public spaces strewn with litter, right in front of houses which some folk have lovingly renovated?
Why, with high unemployment in our area, do there not seem to be projects for unskilled people to pick up, clean up and improve our streets and living areas? As well as providing work, this would instil a sense of self worth and in return teach people respect for infrastructure. Why do we not respect hundreds of basic regulations that safeguard our lives and those of others, including stopping at stop streets, crossing at designated places?
Why do we not repair robots – some have been out of order for four or more years– or fail to replace accident-damaged, faded or missing road signs all over town or repaint zebra crossings?
Why do we allow young people to gather outside licensed venues to party with loud music from their cars and whistle and shout remarks at school girls who must pass on their way home.
Why do we allow our public spaces – our dams and recreational areas, our beautiful parks and communal sports facilities, the once beautiful centre piece of Queenstown Komani, the Hexegon – to degenerate into ugly, uncared for areas?
These are a reflection of the state of a community’s soul and they should lift people’s spirits. If maintained they will improve our psychological wellbeing and make us feel better, live better, achieve better and dream bigger.
Why do we not see the authorities planting many trees for our children to enjoy both today and in their golden years? Why do we allow our state assets – police precincts, hospitals, colleges, schools and clinics – to degenerate? Why do we trample boundary fences to urinate near public clinics where health standards should be adhered to in the interest of the elderly, the frail and sickly?
And why do we allow problems to continue until there is a total collapse, a crisis, danger or social unrest before we act?
Ancient and modern wisdom teaches us that a child does not do as you tell him to do, they do as they see their parents do. What are our elected leaders who raised their hands to represent our interest at council level, and are paid for to do it, doing? Where are our law enforcement agencies?
If our leaders and officials set priorities and lived as examples for us as a community, we would ALL begin to experience changes in our daily lives. And we could all start contributing by practising ubuntu. If we did we would become a winning town with winning children, youth, parents and happy aged people. If people of the Eastern Cape refuse to accept the “orphan province” label and push towards looking and living better we will become modern citizens with dignity and retain our true identity! — Christo Liebenberg, Queenstown