Public protector lends sympathetic ear to community’s woes

As the temperature soars past 30° C in the small town of Carolina in Mpumalanga, a lone public tap stands at the entrance of the town hall. Community members use water from the tap to wash their feet under the watchful gaze of a guard. But in the hours preceding a town hall meeting on Wednesday, not a single soul took a sip of the clean-looking water.

Residents streamed in their hundreds into the town hall to share their grievances with Public Protector Thuli Madonsela.

In 2012, Carolina suffered a severe acid water crisis that took seven months to resolve. Experts warn the problem could resurface after even a single heavy downpour in the area. But this was not the community members’ only or most serious grievance.

Gnawing issues of corruption and governance as well as ill-built Reconstruction and Development Programme houses were the most pressing complaints among residents. There was also talk of municipal leaders’ lack of accountability and problems in receiving medical attention at healthcare facilities.

The meeting between the protector and the community is one of many being undertaken across the country.

Ms Madonsela’s office is investigating issues that concern smaller communities such as Carolina, with a strong focus this year on healthcare matters such as infant mortality rates, quality of care, resources, procurement procedures and the working conditions of staff.

Speaking after Tuesday’s meeting, Ms Madonsela said it was not just a talk shop. "There is a plan of action and the stakeholder consultative sessions are part of it," she said.

Following the discussion, a report was drawn up to be presented to provincial authorities on Thursday.

"The idea was to create a platform and, through this process, address the very specific issues that the community is raising. The report will contain the voices and views of the important stakeholders," she said.

Ms Madonsela emphasised that the provincial legislature would not be allowed to ignore the reports from the communities in Mpumalanga the protector has visited thus far.

"We don’t want to rush the relevant authorities into making promises they will be unable to keep, for we must take what they say back to the communities to allow them to be in the know," she said. "This helps with accountability. As a result, we want to give them until mid-November to get to the core of the issues raised and come up with workable solutions."