A councillor from the Makhado Municipality has sparked outrage in the Madombidzha community after allegedly blocking off a road leading to a local school and using the land to build rental apartments.
Jeaneth Matumba, an ANC councillor who also serves on the municipality's executive committee, occupies a property next to the road that runs from the main intersection at the entrance to Madombidzha to Maluta High School. The area falls under traditional authority, with Vhamusanda Vho Ntsundeni Sinthumule responsible for maintaining order.
Community members, who wished to remain anonymous, said they were shocked to find the road closed off and a wall erected, obstructing traffic.
"There was no notification. Nobody came to inform us, so we were surprised to see the road being closed for someone to build a business. Who in their right mind would build there, knowing it's illegal?" one resident told Limpopo Mirror.
Some residents said they had raised complaints with the local traditional leader and his council, but to no avail. "That land belongs to the traditional leader, and no one else has authority over it," one resident said.
Further controversy arose when it was discovered that the wall around Matumba's property extended under Eskom power lines, enclosing an electricity transformer inside her yard. Normally, such areas are declared servitudes because of safety concerns, with no buildings allowed. Eskom now no longer has direct access to the infrastructure.
When the neighbouring area experienced a power outage for several days, many in the community blamed the councillor, believing the issue stemmed from the transformer on her property.
When approached for comment, Vhamusanda Ntsundeni Sinthumule confirmed that he is responsible for allocating stands. "Upon investigation, we found that this stand was not registered. All business stand numbers must be recorded with the traditional leader and the Sinthumule Tribal Council," he said. Sinthumule accused Matumba of occupying the land illegally.
He added that the road in question was earmarked for paving, with funding allocated in the Makhado Municipality's latest budget. "I cannot stay silent when Matumba, as a councillor, builds rental houses without permission," he said.
Sinthumule stated that Matumba had been summoned multiple times to appear before the local council but had failed to do so. He also confirmed that discussions were underway with Eskom regarding the power lines now running through Matumba's extended property.
The chairperson of the Sinthumule Tribal Council, Mr Makhado Sinthumule, confirmed that no permission-to-occupy (PTO) certificate had been issued to Matumba. He stated that she could not be allowed to build on an access road designated for paving. He also criticised her for failing to follow the correct procedures before constructing her rental housing complex.
"She is conducting a business on the premises, yet it has not been registered with the tribal council. We have launched an investigation into how she built her business without permission," he said.
Eskom's customer service manager in Vhembe, Mr Ntshavheni Nenguda, said the company would send a surveyor to assess the site. A technician would also be dispatched to inspect the electricity connections.
In response, Cllr Jeaneth Matumba denied any wrongdoing, insisting that she had followed the correct procedures to acquire rights to the property. She claimed she had paid the necessary nduvho to Vhamusanda Ntsundeni Sinthumule.
Matumba said she had approached the vhamusanda after her property wall had been damaged several times by passing vehicles. She requested permission to close off the street and paid the required amount to do so.
She also denied enclosing the Eskom transformer, claiming that Eskom had placed it inside her yard. "If the transformer is causing problems for the community, I will ask Eskom to remove it," she said.
Matumba further denied ignoring summonses from the traditional council, saying she had visited their offices multiple times but was told no meetings were scheduled.
However, she did not respond to a question about why she chose to close off a road earmarked for upgrading by the municipality that she serves as a councillor.