Burning N2 protests set to continue ‘until refuse issue resolved’

Residents want to be included in job selection process of refuse workers

RESIDENTS of the Barcelona informal settlement near Gugulethu have been burning tyres and dumping rubble on the N2 on most nights since the start of July to show their anger about refuse removal.

Traffic has been diverted in the Borcherds Quarry area when protests have flared up. Police continue to be on high alert in the evenings when people use the N2.

Residents want to be included in the job selection process of refuse workers in the informal settlement.

Community leader Mawethu Tafana said residents would continue causing disruptions on the highway until the matter was resolved.

“The rubbish has not been collected for about two months. The recent tender came to an end.

“Residents do not want this process of a database to be used because they feel they are not going to benefit,” he said.

The database contains names of people who can work for the contractor, but the community said the contractor did not necessarily choose people who the community thought should be employed.

“People want to run this process because they know who desperately needs employment in their community,” Tafana said.

“Children’s health has been affected by this. We had a similar case with the toilets when the waste was not collected for about four months.”

He said residents had called for a meeting with ward councillor Mzwakhe Nqavashe, but he refused.

Nqavashe said: “I have engaged with residents to try and resolve this matter, but there was a deadlock.

“There are people in that community with an agenda who are behind this,” Nqavashe said.

“I will be meeting with them at the weekend to see if we can come up with a solution,” he added.

The City was in consultation with the various community leaders and councillors to try and resolve the community disputes.

The City’s Mayco member for utility services Ernest Sonnenberg said resolution of the issue depended on residents accepting the allocation of jobs and allowing the City to provide services.

“The tender for refuse collection services is awarded on a three-year basis and a new contractor has been in place as of July 1. Services have been delivered up until the end of June without incident,” Sonnenberg said.

“The new workers were hired on time by the new contractor, ready to start work from July 1, but certain community leadership members are raising conflict over who they feel should get the jobs, instead of using the council approved process of random selection of unemployed residents off a database.”