10 Dec 2015

Residents of Bobonong and surrounding villages say queues at the shops, filling station, Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) and the bank during the festive season in Bobonong are worrisome.

Residents expressed their concern in interviews recently.

Mr Mooketsi Masilo said the only filling station in Bobonong, which is used by the 11 villages of Bobirwa Sub-district was too small to supply the high number of vehicles that would require fuel during the festive season.

Mr Masilo said the filling station was also located closely to the Bobonong-Selebi Phikwe road where motorists ended up making long queues that blocked the road resulting in accidents.

He said tourists, who come to the area like Mashatu Game Reserve and Tuli Block get stuck in Bobonong and some were forced to go and fuel up in Selebi Phikwe.

Ms Tebogo Osupile of Gobojango expressed her concern over disfuctioning of the only two Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) in Bobonong which are also used by people from the whole of Bobirwa villages.

She said the First National Bank (FNB) ATM is out of order most of the time and it sometimes take months to be fixed resulting in people queuing at the Barclays Bank ATM which also get over used. 

“People are forced to travel to Selebi Phikwe in order to do bank services,’’  said Ms Osupile.

She said apart from queuing during the festive season, we also experience problems during the year where government and private companies’ employees who work in the Sub District have difficulties in getting their monthly salaries.

“This situation also affects the delivery and customer service of government departments which result in employees taking leave to travel to Selibe Phikwe for bank services leaving noone at the office to assist the public” said Ms Osupile.

A resident of Lentswe le Moriti Mr Boitumelo Poitshego said the queues at Choppies Supermarket and Sefalana Wholesale is also worrisome.

He said individuals and small supermarkets in the villages of Bobirwa depend on buying food and other goods from these shops.

Mr Poitshego said the only trusted shops are too small to stock more goods and they are always over crowded during festive season.

Dandane Mabeleng councillor Mr Keoagile Ramatoto shared the same sentiments with residents that indeed queues in shops, filling station and at the ATMs are worrisome in Bobonong during festive season which shows that more developments are expected to be done in Bobonong. Ends