By REGINALD KANYANE
The residents of Taung embarked on a peaceful march and barricaded the N18 road on Monday. They handed over their memorandum of demand to the North West Premier, Bushy Maape’s office.
The anticipated march was led by Re Aga Taung Civic Organisation chairperson, Modisaotsile Disco Lebitse. According to Lebitse, there is a lot of malfeasance and corruption happening in Taung and that hampers developments.
“There is abuse of public money by the Greater Taung Local Municipality (GTLM). The municipality purchased two BMW vehicles for the mayor, Tumisang Gaoraelwe and municipal speaker, Grace Moipolai.
“Again, there is a regular breakdown of water systems, but we want to reclaim our Taung Dam that was sold to a private entity without community concerns. There is also nepotism and cadre deployment that exist within the municipality and sectoral departments,” he said.
Lebitse said they demand the cancellation of traffic officers’ learnership because the whole process was flawed. He further said, they demand the government entities to insource security guards.
“The municipality should also cancel the property rates in Ext 6. We demand that the municipality pave streets and all unoccupied RDP houses be occupied. We also want to reclaim our beloved Taung Cultural Calabash and demand that local artists be prioritised.
“We demand the completion of Taung Ext 7 water project and atleast municipality pave streets there. There are incomplete stormwater projects in Mase and Matlhako 1 villages that need to be completed too,” said Lebitse.
He added that, more libraries are needed across Taung and called for proper maintenance of Pudimoe library. Lebitse said, they demand cleaning projects in Taung CBD and parks because this has a negative impact on the environment.
“We also call for the removal of all illegal foreigners in Taung and urge the government to build a rehabilitation centre for drug addicts in Taung. There are challenges on various road projects across Taung too.
“So, we demand that the D201 road project from Mokassa to Pampierstad not be abandoned in the process, like what happened to the D221 road project in Molelema village. We urge the government to prioritise the AZ502 road in Mogopela, including the internal road in Myra,” he said.
Lebitse also demanded the return of Taung Skull with an amount of R86 billion. He said the skull was taken away 98 years ago, so that money will contribute positively to building the Taung museum and creating jobs in the tourism sector.
“We need an update on incomplete construction projects such as Sekhing Community Healthcare Centre, Pudimoe Old Age Home, Manthe Indoor Sports Complex, Pudimoe Sports Ground, and Manthe Community Hall,” said Lebitse.
Meanwhile, the Community Liaison Officer (CLO), Tshepo Leoko, who received the memorandum on behalf of Maape said: “I must confirm that we came here to listen to the grievances of the community. They did send the request two weeks back, so it is necessary for us to be here to listen to their frustrations.
“We have received their memorandum and will ensure that their demands are met. One of the things they have raised is an issue of water. We understand that North West is a water scarce province and that has received the attention of municipalities.”
The Guardian 