MAFARAFARA/TAUNG
Despite repeated pleas to the Fetakgomo Tubatse Local Municipality (FTLM) to provide basic services including a proper access bridge in the area, residents of Mafarafara and Taung Villages say their calls are falling on deaf ears.
Now, with the rainy season approaching, panic is growing. The community erected makeshift structure made of poles and corrugated iron crossing the Tubatse River is expected to overflow, cutting off hundreds of residents and putting lives at risk.
The bridge is the only link between Mafarafara and Taung. It is used daily by school children and mothers who need to access healthcare services at the Taung Clinic.
Earlier this year, Sekhukhune Times and Sekhukhune Dispatch exposed the saga, with the FTLM responded that building a bridge over the Tubatse River would require provincial and national government intervention due to the size of the river.
The municipality responded that residents have other options for clinics in Burgersfort, Ga-Motodi and Praktiseer, and that it is by choice that they cross.
Residents say that explanation shows how disconnected the municipality is from their reality.
Mafarafara has no high school after Mashakwaneng Secondary, the only secondary school in the area, was closed during Limpopo’s school rationalization programme in 2022. Learners are forced to cross to Taung daily for schooling.
Community leader, Fannie Mzimba, who is Interim ActionSA Branch Chairperson in the area, says the community has lost all hope.
“We don’t have trust in our government anymore. We are neglected and we hope maybe the upcoming administration will do better,” said Mzimba.
Mzimba said the community is now planning to fortify the makeshift crossing as an interim safety measure before heavy rains flood the local river, by reinforcing it with additional timber, sandbags and steel supports.
“We cannot wait for a child or an elderly citizen to be washed away. If the municipality will not build us a bridge, we will try to strengthen what we have ourselves, even though we know it is not safe,” he said.
Mzimba said residents’ frustration with service delivery and party politics pushed them to find a new political home.
“We were disappointed on how government and the ruling party treat us. After the ruling party failed us and also nominated the ward councillor that we don’t want, residents ended up finding a new political home,” he explained.
The bridge is not the only grievance in the communities. Residents are also complaining about deplorable internal roads, lack of electricity, and a general feeling of being forgotten.
“Our roads are not accessible. People wait long hours for ambulances and police to arrive because of poor roads. We are afraid people may end up dying waiting for ambulances. And criminals can easily escape after committing crimes because they know the police will take time to arrive. We have rights just like other communities. They must not treat us as inferior. We deserve to have services just like other communities,” Mzimba said.
Mzimba added that the community also lives in darkness after an electrification project was abandoned years ago.
“We also lack electricity because the electricity project in the area was stalled a few years ago and the municipality is not saying anything. We have poles standing with no wires, children study with candles. How can we develop like that?” he asked.
“We are not asking for luxury. We are asking for a bridge so our children can go to school safely, roads so ambulances can reach us, and electricity that was promised long ago. Is that too much to ask in a democratic South Africa?” he furthered asked.
At the time of going to press, the FTLM had not responded to enquiries sent by the publication.