02 Jul 2019

Boswelatlou councilor in Lobatse, Mr Themba Stimela has asked the council to intensify bush clearing through Ipelegeng labour intensive projects in Lobatse.

Commenting during discussion of the report on Ipelegeng programme activities in the town, Mr Stimela said some areas in Lobatse had thick vegetation that pose serious risk to residents’ lives.

He pointed that criminals hid among those bushes and attack passers-by to rob them of their belongings. 

Mr Stimela said such robberies were prevalent in bushes along the railway in Boswelatlou and Tsopeng North.

“Vegetation control is a serious concern for this town. If one takes a place like Tsopeng North together with Boswelatlou where people cross the railway line, there is a very thick bush there,” he said.

Tsopeng North councilor Mr Gofaone Kedise pointed that people were killed in those bushes around Pitikwe location by criminals last year. 

He therefore said mass clearing of bushes was necessary.

Ipelegeng programme coordinator for Lobatse Town Council, Mr Gerald Mahumba, explained in his report that they were hamstrung by shortage of equipment to carry out some labour intensive projects adequately.

Mr Mahumba said Lobatse Town Council had been allocated P8 million for the 2019/20 financial year to implement 51 projects, among them vegetation control.

Mr Mahumba added that other labour intensive projects that the council would carry out through Ipelegeng included desilting and garbage collection. 

He said some of the labour intensive projects had already commenced.

In addition to the labour intensive project, which would  be 47, Mr Mahumba further said the council would implement technical projects through Ipelegeng in the current financial year. 

He said Ipelegeng had engaged 1  045 women and 467 men this year.

He said the programme was experiencing a challenge of poor productivity as well as deliberate absenteeism by workers in Lobatse.

“We have also realised that supervisors are rarely on site. 

As a way of addressing the problem we have embarked on community meetings as a way of mitigating these challenges,” he said.

Woodhall councilor Mr Molaodi Mantle called for intensification of desilting exercise. 

He said it had been many years now without the exercise taking place in Lobatse.

Maokaneng councilor, Ms Tiny Dinoko called for close monitoring of Ipelegeng supervisors, whom she said were oppressive to workers. 

Councillor Kedise said the root factor of poor supervision was the fact that some active politicians were acting as Ipelegeng supervisors, through their positions in their Ward Development Committee (WDC). 

He said such supervisors treated workers with descrimination  and sometimes according to party affiliations, to safeguard their interests. 

He said active politicians should be removed from WDC positions. Ends