WARD 18 community members, which includes Imbali Unit 14 and Mpumelelo area in France, have vowed that they will not rest until their ward councillor Sindi Gwala has been removed from her position as she allegedly does not fulfil her duties as a ward councillor.
Community members brought Imbali Unit 14 to a standstill on Monday where they blockaded roads entering the area with burning tyres, bottles and stones.
They said since Gwala was elected as ward councillor, she doesn’t hold community meetings to discuss problems that the community faces.
They also complained about poor service delivery in their ward.
This is Gwala’s second term as a ward councillor.
One community member who did not want to be named in fear of victimisation said Gwala undermines the community and does not care about what is going on in her ward.
“We don’t have proper roads, water pipes are leaking, we do not have street lights and we have a water problem.
“We could go days without water and when we try to call Gwala to report the matter she says ‘If you do not have water where do you expect me to get water from?’
“We have tried numerous times to engage with her but she never comes to meet with the community. The only time that we see her is when there are protests, and even if she does attent she does not address us,” he said.
Another community member said: “The issue of poor service delivery has gone too far and there is no way that she [Gwala] will be able to fix it. We no longer want to engage with her, we want her out. She failed to do her job as a councillor. She must give this position to other people who are willing to work for the community. If she is not removed we will continue with the protests because we no longer want her,” she said.
Community members also revealed that there are people who were arrested regarding this incident which included taxi drivers and conductors. Community members claim that some of the people who were arrested were not even part of the protest but were just standing and watching and others were just passing by.
Gwala, who was present at the protest told the Echo journalist that she could not comment at the time and that she could be contacted telephonically.
However, numerous calls made by the Echo to Gwala went unanswered.
