THE COMMUNITY IS TIRED OF EMPTY BOELPAN PROMISES
Thabang Thembani
THE COMMUNITY TIRED OF EMPTY VOELPAN DAM PROMISES.
The tragic tale of Ntate Ranthomeng remains embedded in the hearts and memories of the people
who witnessed him losing his wife and the property that he bought with his hard-earned
retirements funds. This comes as a result of the torrent of water from the Voelpan dam that has
flown into his house. Engulfing his house and destroying the furniture in the process, he was forced
to relocate to an alternative accommodation against his will. His wish was to live in the house that
he bought for his retirement and the one in which he buried his wife. That is common knowledge
among his neighbors and relatives.
Everyone knows the excitement that comes with acquiring your property or getting your own house,
that is the best memory for anyone who has achieved that goal. A house is a sign of achievement
and gives one some sense of dignity and belonging. It allows you to build a connected
family unit and a legacy for future generations. However, for the residents of Riverside, their
excitement was short-lived. The nightmare began when the water from underground was first
discharged into the Voelpan. The streets were filled with sewerage from blocked main holes, houses
were engulfed by the water from the dam and the infrastructure was destroyed and leaving other
properties half submerged in the water. The problem has been going on since 2021 and after the
heavy rains of that year, the situation went from bad to worst.
The rights of the people have continued to be furthermore violated for almost three years now, the people of Riverside have sought an intervention but to no avail. The government has instead erected
temporary structures for the people whose houses have collapsed. These are houses built with slabs
and corrugated iron sheets, they are so small people can’t move in with their furniture. Only a few
people could afford the luxury of moving to areas with better living conditions.
One of the affected residents is the grandmother, Mrs Maseng who lamented painfully. “I’m getting old daily and you know when you age that your body and immune system becomes very weak. You will feel sorry for me in winter, especially in the morning and evenings when my arthritis attacks me. I can’t do anything. On top of that, I have very young grandchildren that I have to look after, and every now and then I have to make sure that they don’t play in that dangerous water. I’m always worried that they may get sick from the water-borne disease.” The people also lamented about how they have lost faith in the politicians, the journalists from both electronic and print media have come to hear their stories and disappeared. Nothing and no action has happened until now. They are not even certain whether they will vote in the upcoming National and Provincial government elections.
Keeditse is a twenty-two-year-old young woman who had this to say about voting, “I don’t see
myself carrying my ID to the voting station while our rights continue to be ignored like this, we are
tired of living like this. I cannot allow my friends and cousins to visit me because my living
conditions are very appalling. The house smells bad because of the sewer and it’s so uncomfortable
to have visitors in the houses when the situation is like that.”
The question one would ask is, how long is this going to continue without finding a solution? The
sewer pump station is submerged in the water and the people are continuing to experience spillages
inside their toilets. The streets are full of human waste that is flowing from the blocked pipelines
and main hole.