Bekkersdal residents air concerns by voting
by Natasha Marrian and Reitumetse Pitso,
2014-05-07 16:05:34.0
BEKKERSDAL residents threw down their stones and took up their ballot papers on Wednesday, airing their concerns by turning up to vote.
The community of Bekkersdal has made it difficult for the African National Congress (ANC) to campaign in the area, with their attempts thwarted on three different occasions by residents booing government officials and chasing away ANC volunteers.
Gauteng premier Nomvula Mokonyane became even more unpopular with local residents when she said the party did not want their "dirty votes". While she apologised publicly for the comments, residents remain upset, saying they expected her to return to them directly and apologise.
The township, on Gauteng’s West Rand, has been the site of violent protests sporadically until as late as the eve of elections on Tuesday, when the community torched Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) tents after a meeting held late in the afternoon.
Dozens of residents queued to vote on Wednesday, many saying it was the only way to change their plight.
Resident Lenia Gwalasa, whose children were involved in the protests, said most parents in the area supported the youth in their fight for a better life. She said the only way to change things was to vote.
Another resident, Bakhuselekile, said he was still angry about Ms Mokonyane’s comments but he recognised that they were not the views of the ANC.
The area was under heavy police and military watch on Wednesday, with dozens of police vehicles and police officers on horseback patrolling the area. Residents appeared unfazed by the heavy police presence but some were afraid to speak to the media about the issues which led to the protests since September last year.
The dominant parties in the area were the ANC, the Congress of the People, the Democratic Alliance and newcomer, the Economic Freedom Fighters had a significant presence.
Bekkersdal is surrounded by 16 mine shafts, say residents. Many, however, have not found jobs on the mines. Workers most often come from the Eastern Cape, Lesotho and Mozambique, leaving residents reliant on the local municipality and the government for jobs.
But many complain that due to nepotism in the municipality, they are also unable to access opportunities there.
The ANC in the area is divided, particularly by those who failed to secure positions in the 2011 local government elections. These members are using the concerns of other residents to attempt to remove the current leadership in the local municipality.
ANC member Sipho Mabasa, who forms part of the Greater Westonaria Concerned Residents Association that drove the community protests admitted to party infighting, saying that "ANC members were sabotaging the ANC".
"People are losing hope in the ANC because of individuals," he told the BDlive.
He referred to an incident in which a well-known ANC member, Reggie Nkabinde, was issuing food parcels during a rally on Saturday. Mr Nkabinde is at the centre of many of the resident’s concerns in the area and is seen as a "tenderpreneur", benefiting from projects intended to assist the community, but that have failed to yield results.
Residents directed the Business Day to his home in Bekkersdal. The double-storey mansion, with steel pillars, high walls and metal gates, is positioned in the midst of shacks and dire poverty.
The poverty and desperation for jobs and opportunities is palpable. Residents also complain about sewerage in the streets, a lack of facilities, and practically no servicing from the municipality in terms of refuse collection. Heaps of litter dot almost every street in Bekkersdal.
South African National Defence Force soldiers patrol the streets as voting takes place in Bekkersdal on Wednesday. Picture: PUXLEY MAKGATHO
BEKKERSDAL residents threw down their stones and took up their ballot papers on Wednesday, airing their concerns by turning up to vote.
The community of Bekkersdal has made it difficult for the African National Congress (ANC) to campaign in the area, with their attempts thwarted on three different occasions by residents booing government officials and chasing away ANC volunteers.
Gauteng premier Nomvula Mokonyane became even more unpopular with local residents when she said the party did not want their "dirty votes". While she apologised publicly for the comments, residents remain upset, saying they expected her to return to them directly and apologise.
The township, on Gauteng’s West Rand, has been the site of violent protests sporadically until as late as the eve of elections on Tuesday, when the community torched Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) tents after a meeting held late in the afternoon.
Dozens of residents queued to vote on Wednesday, many saying it was the only way to change their plight.
Resident Lenia Gwalasa, whose children were involved in the protests, said most parents in the area supported the youth in their fight for a better life. She said the only way to change things was to vote.
Another resident, Bakhuselekile, said he was still angry about Ms Mokonyane’s comments but he recognised that they were not the views of the ANC.
The area was under heavy police and military watch on Wednesday, with dozens of police vehicles and police officers on horseback patrolling the area. Residents appeared unfazed by the heavy police presence but some were afraid to speak to the media about the issues which led to the protests since September last year.
The dominant parties in the area were the ANC, the Congress of the People, the Democratic Alliance and newcomer, the Economic Freedom Fighters had a significant presence.
Bekkersdal is surrounded by 16 mine shafts, say residents. Many, however, have not found jobs on the mines. Workers most often come from the Eastern Cape, Lesotho and Mozambique, leaving residents reliant on the local municipality and the government for jobs.
But many complain that due to nepotism in the municipality, they are also unable to access opportunities there.
The ANC in the area is divided, particularly by those who failed to secure positions in the 2011 local government elections. These members are using the concerns of other residents to attempt to remove the current leadership in the local municipality.
ANC member Sipho Mabasa, who forms part of the Greater Westonaria Concerned Residents Association that drove the community protests admitted to party infighting, saying that "ANC members were sabotaging the ANC".
"People are losing hope in the ANC because of individuals," he told the BDlive.
He referred to an incident in which a well-known ANC member, Reggie Nkabinde, was issuing food parcels during a rally on Saturday. Mr Nkabinde is at the centre of many of the resident’s concerns in the area and is seen as a "tenderpreneur", benefiting from projects intended to assist the community, but that have failed to yield results.
Residents directed the Business Day to his home in Bekkersdal. The double-storey mansion, with steel pillars, high walls and metal gates, is positioned in the midst of shacks and dire poverty.
The poverty and desperation for jobs and opportunities is palpable. Residents also complain about sewerage in the streets, a lack of facilities, and practically no servicing from the municipality in terms of refuse collection. Heaps of litter dot almost every street in Bekkersdal.
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