Umzumbe residents cough up R150k for road construction

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18-08-2025
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South Coast Herald
Source

Many have used their pensions to contribute to the building of the road.

Residents of Mabheleni in the KwaNcazolo area have come together to fix a road, a long-standing frustration that has made the neighbourhood inaccessible.

The community said that despite numerous complaints to the KZN Department of Transport (DoT), the issue remained unaddressed, prompting the community to seek alternative solutions.

Sifiso Dlamini, who reached out to Fever, said they have lost hope in the government.

He said he remembers his grandfather asking for this road to be constructed a few years after the 1994 democratic elections, but nothing has been done.

“Councillors come and go, but they do not help us at all. We have complained to the DoT after forming a community transport committee. We have also reached out to Umzumbe Municipality, and they tell us that the road in question belongs to the department. So if our local government does not want to help us, who will?” asked Dlamini.

He said they decided to use their own money to fix this road because during rainy seasons, no vehicle can access the road.

“It is more difficult when there are funerals,” he said.

In constructing the road, Dlamini said they first dug trenches.

“Everyone in the community contributed money for cement. The men in the area offered to help build the road,” he said.

Dlamini said they have spent close to R150 000 constructing that road.

With one lane almost done, Dlamini said they are determined to build the second lane.

A resident who has lived in the area for over 60 years, Ndabazake Maluleka, said they do not trust the government’s promises.

“The irony is that government officials from different political parties will use the road that we built to come here and campaign for the upcoming local government elections,” he said.

Maluleka said what was sad was that they used their pensions to contribute to the construction of the road.

“This affects the way we buy food at home and our medication. We can’t even buy our grandchildren sweets because we have to buy cement,” he said.

After numerous attempts to get a statement from the KZN DoT spokesperson, Ndabezinhle Sibiya, a comment had not been received at the time of going to press.