MOBENI HEIGHTS CREMATORIUM: NEGLECT SHOULD COME AS NO SURPRISE
YOUR front-page headline “Funds diversion upsets residents: Poor can’t afford private cremation” (Sunday Tribune Herald, March 4), refers.
According to this, funds meant to revamp the Mobeni Heights Crematorium, which is falling apart, have been diverted to build statues of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo.
I believe this is an overkill in acknowledging the contributions made by these two giants to South African politics in general and the ANC in particular.
But what really amazes me is the Indian community’s outrage at the council’s action. Don’t they know how the ethekwini Municipality functions?
Upgrading public facilities like crematoria, revamping clinics which are falling apart, maintenance of ailing infrastructure such as water pipes and roads, are low onthe council’s priority list.
Take last year’s Durban storm damage, especially on the South Coast – it has still not been fixed. Minor repairs have been made but those that suffered extensive damage are still in a sorry state.
What takes priority are things like the erection of statues, street names, sponsoring millions of rand for major sporting events nobody wants and spending a fortune bringing artists from abroad to our city, prayers over breakfast for students to pass matric exams and other unnecessary messages of goodwill to the electorate, with the hidden motive of garnering votes using the rates and taxes of the general public for parochial party promotions.
These disguised actions by the Anc-led council are actually a subtle way of influencing the semi-literate voters.
The only people who benefit from these projects, which do not follow legitimate tender policies, are a few select tenderpreneurs and political cronies.
No wonderthe auditor-general has red-marked the ethekwini Municipality for millions on irregular expenditure
SANJAY SINGH
Queensburgh
The article in the Sunday Tribune Herald by Karinda Jagmohan “Funds diversion upsets residents” is a shame. The R2million-plus previously allocated to fixing the broken furnaces at the Mobeni Heights Crematorium would instead be fed into the R21m needed to build statues of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo.
The only word that comes to mind is “horrific”. The municipality, which espouses the principle of Batho Pele (People First), is not in any way exhibiting these principles.
As time passes it is becoming clear that no value is put on the involvement of the Indian community and no respect is being shown to them to practise their religion and cultural rites.
Perhaps what is required is some mass action or protest that might get the attention of the “city fathers” who up to now have a “don’t care attitude” to the needs of the community.
What is also alarming is the silence from other political role players, especially the DA. Or USSR ex-leader
Nikita Khrushchev.
are they being typical politicians and worrying only about the community when they require votes?
Some of these councillors promise to build a bridge even when there is no river.
A councillor was mostly aptly described by Nikita Khrushchev who said: “Politicians are the same all over.”
I implore councillors to take the plight of our people seriously and find a working solution. At least let our people have affordable, dignified funerals.
DHAYALAN MOODLEY Mobeni Heights
THE DA in ethekwini has slammed the Capital Adjustment Budget, which has reallocated R2 344 100 meant to replace a furnace at the Mobeni Heights Crematorium.
The funding will now be used as part of the R21 million to build statues of OR Tambo and Nelson Mandela.
The Mobeni Heights Crematorium has not been fully operational for nearly eight years. The crematorium only has one operational furnace and is only able to conduct four cremations per day. This means that too often bereaved families are sent to Clare Estate and Verulam to cremate their loved ones. Cremation at private crematoria is far more expensive than at Mobeni Heights, which often makes things difficult for grieving families.
DA councillors have been engaging with municipal officials for years on this issue, and were relieved to finally see the required R2.3m in the 2017 budget. It is now, however, going to be used to build statues, further worsening problems for Chatsworth families.
The DA has no problem with statues of Nelson Mandela and OR Tambo, but believes the required cost of R21m is exorbitant.
On numerous occasions during 2017, DA Chatsworth councillors asked the officials on the progress of the upgrade and were told the tender process was still in progress and would be completed soon. The same answer was given to the DA’S questions in council meetings.
The reasons given by the officials on the budget document was that the Bid Adjudication Committee, in its meeting on December 4, 2017, said this project was originally a 4ME CIDB Grade project which was changed to 1ME Grade as a way of allowing for more tenderers to quote. This grading matter could have been resolved sooner to prioritise service delivery and resolve this terrible situation.
The DA will continue to fight for dignified and caring services for the people of Chatsworth and ethekwini.
CLR GANAS GOVENDER Durban