Ndlambe Mayor Khululwa Ncamiso addressed a large and lively group of residents in the Bushman’s River Town Hall last week after the previously scheduled meeting failed. She now firmly intends to personally take responsibility to re-establish, develop, and maintain communication channels with residents of the area.
The scheduled meeting on Tuesday April 15 to discuss the Integrated Development Plan with residents ended in frustration and anger when Ward 3 councillor, Zandile Myali, announced its sudden and premature adjournment citing a lack of presentation equipment.
During last week’s follow-up meeting, several residents voiced their frustration and dissatisfaction with the lack of service delivery despite their consistent payment of rates and in some cases exorbitant increases. They requested concrete outcomes and that the municipal manager and directors resolve operational issues. Participants also highlighted concerns about crime and safety in the community, compounded by the lack of basic services like water.
At one stage, it looked like the anger could boil over and that the meeting could once again come to another abrupt end, with one resident even stating that she was “gatvol” and planning action if necessary. Ncamiso said she was prepared to end the meeting and come back later if necessary. However, a call for order from Jacques de Wit, BRRAG committee member, brought the meeting back on track and it ended with an agreed plan forward.
Ncamiso repeated her earlier public statements that she was concerned after the failed April meeting. She was holding to her promise to personally attend the reconvened meeting where she unequivocally apologised to residents on behalf of the council.
A strong contingent of residents and representatives from community organisations explained their earlier submissions and views to the IDP. They included De Wit of BRRAG, Chester Wilmot of Estuary Care, Justin Wilmot of the Chamber of Business and Tourism and Ferenc Toth of BRM Nightwatch.
Ncamiso said she found it strange that individual issues, ranging from sewage spillage to water shortages and those mentioned by residents had yet to be addressed.
“Some of them are operational issues that should have been managed by employees and managers. The employees should be reporting to the managers so that appropriate action can be taken,” she said. “They must be addressed and resolved as soon as possible,” she said.
After the failure of the April meeting, BRRAG said in a statement that the ratepayers of Boesmansriviermond were not represented on political platforms, “leaving a huge gap for proper representation and consultation”. Councillor Myali, it stated, had never reached out to the community and had not taken the ratepayers of Boesmansriviermond seriously.
“As far as the gap between you and the ward councillor is concerned, I don’t know whether he is afraid or what,” Ncamiso said. Ward councillors had an oversight responsibility. They should conduct regular ward committee meetings and give the council regular feedback. They needed to open communication channels with the community and see that they were maintained, she explained.
As the situation stands now, Ncamisa gave the undertaking that she would personally take responsibility to re-establish and develop communication channels with Bushman’s residents.
Rene Uren, Ndlambe IDP manager, ended the meeting when she informed everyone that she had started documenting all complaints and issues, not only from Bushman’s River Mouth but all the other wards as well. These would be presented to council and to all directors for their signatures and comments on how they can address the issues raised by residents.
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This article was first published in Talk of the Town, May 22, 2025. The newspaper serving the communities of Ndlambe and the Sunshine Coast, with a weekly wrap of Makhanda news, is available at stores from early on Thursdays.
