Merebank community calls mayor’s service-delivery meeting a ‘tick-box exercise’ - IOL

Mayor Cyril Xaba and officials from the municipality conducted an oversight visit of areas affected with sewer spillages and water leaks.

Merebank residents and community leaders said a recent service-delivery meeting led by eThekwini mayor Cyril Xaba failed to give them an opportunity to raise concerns about sewer overflows, water interruptions and ageing infrastructure.

Xaba spoke at a service delivery intervention programme held at the Austerville Hall last week.

Residents said they were disappointed that Xaba and his team did not give the community an opportunity to engage with them about pertinent issues affecting the south Durban community.

In a statement, the eThekwini Municipality said Xaba led a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary service delivery blitz across the South Durban Basin area, as part of the City’s accelerated programme to restore critical public infrastructure.

The blitz targeted ongoing service challenges, focusing on repairing persistent sewer spillages and water leaks within Merebank, Austerville, Wentworth, Merewent, and Lamontville.

The operation is part of the city's broader turnaround strategy to deploy technical response teams directly to areas severely burdened by water leaks and sewer spillages.

During the site inspection, which brought teams from eThekwini Water and Sanitation (EWS), Xaba closely monitored technical teams carrying out repairs, clearing and flushing severe sewer network blockages.

"We have heard the frustration from communities regarding water leaks and the health hazards posed by public sewer overflows. Our goal here is not just to apply temporary fixes, but to ensure our maintenance crews clear backlog systemically, restore the dignity of our residents, and protect our environment from toxic spillages,” Xaba said in the statement.

He warned that public infrastructure misuse remains a primary driver of recurring sewer system  blockages across the municipality.

He urged community members to safeguard their infrastructure by stopping the disposal of foreign objects in sewer manholes.

Daya Naidoo, chairperson of the Merebank Ratepayers Association, said they were disappointed with Xaba’s lack of community engagement.

He said the residents were invited to attend with the expectation that they would receive feedback and have an opportunity to engage directly with municipality’s leadership about the challenges affecting their communities. 

“That opportunity did not materialise in the manner residents expected. We acknowledge that Xaba provided feedback on the sewer problems. However, we question the value of a meeting.

“Residents did not come to simply sit in a hall and listen. They came because they have problems that require answers. 

“We believe that this was a tick-box exercise ahead of the Local Government Elections.”

He said residents should not be reduced to an audience while officials deliver presentations about problems that residents experience every day.

Community leader Paul Naidoo, 77, said the community was deteriorating due to poor service delivery, sewer overflows, broken sewer lines, aged infrastructure, and pot holes.

He said further to this, there were water leaks and burst pipes that lead to large parts of the community being left without water due to that.

“My expectation was to receive some feedback from the mayor on these matters. We were not given the opportunity to raise our concerns.

“It appears that the mayor used this forum to campaign for his party. It was clearly evident that many supporters were wearing party t-shirts.

“It was surprising to see that the surroundings of Austerville Hall were so clean and tidy on the day, which gives the community and the mayor the impression that service delivery is visible. This is only camouflage,” he said.

Ben Maistry, 62, a community leader, said the meeting failed to meet resident expectations.

“The mayor just came and told us what he thinks we wanted to hear. He held the community accountable for all the service delivery issues, blaming people for throwing dirt into sewage systems and committing vandalism without taking any accountability for anything on their end."

He said unresolved service failures are severely impacting their daily quality of life, including a worsening mosquito infestation linked to standing water and sewage issues.

"We don't have the money to buy repellents, and we are forced to lock our doors early because of the mosquitoes. It is unacceptable," Maistry added.

eThekwini Municipality had not commented at the time of publication.