Residents of Tshitanini, Mbahe, Tshamutilikwa, Nweli, Malamangwa, and Malavuwe villages, which fall under the Thulamela Municipality, have vowed not to vote in the upcoming elections if the government does not build them a tarred 10-kilometre road, extending the D3710.
Community members from the six villages gathered last Tuesday (5 March) at the ANC offices in Polokwane. From there, they marched to the RAL office and to Nkakareng Rakgoale, the Limpopo MEC for Public Works, Roads, and Infrastructure to hand over a memorandum of grievances.
The residents who took part in the march said that they had been complaining about the poor condition of their road since 2015. They argued that they had attempted to engage with RAL and Public Works for years but had received no response.
In the memorandum, residents demand the tarring of gravel roads in their area and added that the area must "be rehabilitated, as we are living in a sloppy area". During the rainy season, residents find reaching their homes extremely difficult. Workers, learners, teachers, and people who work in places further away from home are delayed for hours.
Community representative Mr Lucky Ramulongo said the government was taking them for granted. "It's a busy road; we want roads, or we are not voting," he said. He mentioned that the poor condition of the road had a negative impact on residents as it resulted in a lack of transport availability. He stated that they were giving RAL and the MEC for Public Works and Roads seven working days to respond to their memorandum.
MEC Rakgoale said her department was facing a huge challenge regarding roads. "We are having a backlog; we are going to sit down and see how best we can assist this community because the road has been used by buses," she said. Rakgoale promised she would respond to the memorandum within seven working days.