Business rallies to support Kirkwood residents

01 Feb 2016 | Admin Author

The situation is calm but tense at Kirwood where police were forced to use stun grenades on Thursday morning to disperse local residents when they tried to loot shops in the area.

Thursday's protest by hundreds of local residents, in which they also burnt tyres, would appear to stem from the in-action of local authorities who are accused of failing to act on a list of demands presented to them following violent protests in September.

Six people have been arrested in Kirkwood in the past 24 hours in connection with those September protests.

Kirkwood Chamber chairperson Flippie Ehlers says that in a show of solidarity with residents over the lack of service delivery on the part of the Sunday's River Valley Municipality, local business plans to post bail for the six when they appear in court on Friday.

Below is a letter addressed to the Eastern Cape Premier Phumulo Masaulle

The infrastructure decay and collapse was ignored by the SRV Municipality for a period exceeding 10 years.

Numerous letters and emails to Municipal Manager and Mayor were just ignored.

Request by Business and Citrus industry for several meetings was ignored.

Ecoli in drinking and irrigation water raw sewage that runs into the water canals for months.

HOP houses build seven years ago in Aquapark not connected to the sewerage system.

Residence dump their toilet buckets into the irrigation canal.

Tarred and gravel roads in Municipal areas are past pothole repair stage.

Numerous different contractors work on the Electrical infrastructure, resulting in no Contractor taking responsibility for the network safety.

Business has requested 2 years ago for the appointment of a senior Electrician to be employed in the SRVM.

Request once again "Ignored"

80% of street lights in Residential areas not working.

Many tower mask lights burns day and night, resulting in the abuse of electricity, which just costs the rate payer more.

In summer time streetlights switch off at 7 am and switches on at 17.00, 6 hours of wasted electricity per day.

Waste disposable sights in accessible.

Large part of certain communities without water for up to 14 consecutive days and longer.

It was the Mec and the SRV Municipalities responsibility to provide immediate water to the communities by way of water tankers, Why did the Defence force not come to assist with their water tankers?

Business and Farmers are prepared to fund a new pipeline and pump from the raw water dams to the treatment works so that sufficient water will be available to the affected areas in Kirkwood.

Mayor and MM refuses to have meetings with these sponsors.

Scholars are writing school exams with the sounds of 100's of guns shots being fired, what a shame.

The Premier of the Eastern Cape make use of his authority and restore the dignity of the residence of Sundays River Valley even if it means that the Mayor, the MM and their executive be replaced by capable people.

Is Government going to wake up when this becomes a second Marikana.

Regards
Flippie Ehlers
Chairman Sundays River Business Chamber

Kirkwood becomes a ghost town, local businesses close their doors on what usually is a busy Kirkwood main street.