Protector wraps up roadshow
THE PUBLIC Protector, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane, visited Ritchie on Friday as she wrapped up a nationwide tour of the country.
Ritchie residents got the opportunity to bring their service delivery grievances to Mkhwebane’s direct attention during an engagement at the town’s community hall, as she concluded her four-month roadshow.
Since its launch in February, the roadshow has seen the Public Protector lending an ear to communities and other stakeholders in eight of the country’s provinces, where she also revealed the vision that will underpin the work of her office over the next seven years.
During the tour, she learned of and undertook to resolve the daily struggles of communities, including poor provision of water, sanitation, electricity, health care services, lack of road infrastructure, employment opportunities for youth, non-enforcement of municipal by-laws and allegations of corruption and nepotism.
These were also the main concerns raised by the Ritchie community on Friday, who urged Mkhwebane to “not forget about us”.
She asked communities in areas she could not visit to use other avenues to bring their service delivery and conduct failure grievances to her attention. These included post, e-mail, telephone or her office’s outreach clinics.
Mkhwebane said that besides the focus being on introducing herself to stakeholders and outlining her vision, the forums went a long way to ensure that the services of her office were brought closer to the doorsteps of the marginalised.
She said her office had, prior to the roadshow, taken note of concerns raised through various mediums, including radio and social media, and she was thankful to those who used her visits to directly engage her on any issue of concern.
She was encouraged by the meaningful dialogue she had with stakeholders in other provinces.
Also attending the engagement was Sol Plaatje municipal manager Goolam Akharwaray and executive mayor Mangaliso Matika, who promised residents that the cost of digging graves would be “halved” from R1 705 to R650 after residents complained bitterly about the fact that they could not afford to bury their loved ones.
Mkhwebane told residents that she would send representatives to follow up on residents’ grievances.
She reminded the municipality and police that certain issues remained their mandate, but added that the Public Protector was “there to assist them” if they needed intervention in addressing challenges.
She also warned Matika “not to make promises (to residents) he could not keep”.
Mkhwebane concluded by inviting residents to visit her office and to bring information about issues affecting them, and vowed to use her powers and subpoena government departments, some which had been slow in responding to inquiries, for information needed in investigations.