The Gauteng Cooperative Governance Department says the troubled Emfuleni Municipality does not yet warrant being placed under administration again.
This follows a series of service delivery failures raised by Eyewitness News, following a return visit to the area, with communities continuing to face, among others, erratic water and electricity supply.
In the Boitumelo township, residents told EWN they are living in dire conditions, sharing homes with raw sewage and dangerous creatures like snakes and crabs.
The Boitumelo housing development, built in the late 1990s to provide safe and dignified housing, has deteriorated into unsafe living conditions.
ALSO READ: SAPS PKTT takes over investigation into murder of Emfuleni Municipality accountant
Emfuleni businesses fold under poor service delivery, residents brave waterlogging in homes
Serious underground water intrusion linked to its location near a flood line has left homes damp, unstable, and unfit for habitation.
Despite repeated promises to relocate affected families, many are still living in squalor.
However, the Gauteng COGTA insists these challenges, including sewer failures and crumbling roads, do not yet justify placing the municipality under administration.
Spokesperson Theo Nkonki said progress has been made in stabilising Emfuleni, with early signs of improvement due to their interventions.
“What we are doing now, we are happy with what we are seeing. It looks as though something is coming to life, with regard to, at least, their water and sanitation part. And it’s precisely because of the support, not the confrontational way of working.
He has, however, acknowledged residents’ frustration over delays in achieving a fully functional local government.
Nkosikhona Malinga-Mnisi
www.ewn.co.za
