26 Aug 2015

North East District councillors have noted with concern that Village Extension Team (VET) committees are not operational in several villages in the district.

Commenting on the council chairperson’s speech during the ongoing council meeting recently, councillors said while they understood the importance of working together with various committees at village level, the VETs were not active.

The councillor for Mosojane, Mr Mbaakanyi Smart said in many villages, VET committees were not active. He added that it had the potential to negatively affect efforts to render quality services to the people.

He said the status quo also meant that the delivery of developments to many of the villages in the district would be hampered as there was no coordination and collaboration amongst public officers in the concerned villages.

Sharing similar sentiments, Cllr Elias Mbonini of Masunga said the VET committee was not operational even in Masunga, which is the district headquarters, noting that efforts made in the past to resuscitate the committee had not borne fruit.

For his part, Cllr Dumani Kelepi of Tati Siding West appealed to public officers to strive to render quality services to the public.

He called on them to desist from assisting people based on their status in society, adding that the  habit was entrenched in the minds of some civil servants.

Mr Kelepi said it was crucial for public officers to understand that each customer deserved quality service regardless of their social, political or economic standing.

He also emphasised the need for political leaders to work with public officers to deliver services to communities they had been tasked with serving. On a different matter, the councillor for Moroka, Mr Egbert Tshandu decried the slow pace at which the poverty eradication programme was progressing in the district.

He implored stakeholders to work hard towards ensuring that beneficiaries were assisted without unnecessary delays.

Cllr Tshandu also called on the relevant authorities to bring the next Poverty Eradication Pitso to the North East District.

He said such a move would benefit communities in the district, as it would avail them the opportunity to learn from people from other parts of the country.

On the district trade show, Cllr Tshandu expressed disappointment at its state, noting that despite assertions that the show was growing, the situation on the ground painted a different picture.

He said it was apparent that each year preparations for the show were not done on time hence its lack-lustre state.

 The councillor for Siviya, Mr Bakani Badziili complained about delays by the land board in allocating plots, adding that allocations had remained suspended in his ward for the past three years.

 He appealed to the land board to process applications and allocate people plots in areas with no land shortage problems. Ends