Members of the community are now forced to be neighbourly and share toilets when theirs are full beyond capacity as the metro has too few trucks operating in Thaba Nchu.

Johannes Mofokeng, a ward councillor at Mokwena Location, says the municipality does not have enough trucks to drain toilets as often as is necessary because there is currently only one truck servicing six wards. Thaba Nchu also has forty remote villages according to Desmond Sehume, the head of admin at Barolong Boo Seleka Tribal Authority.

Failing

Joyce Mathobisa at ward 49 has had enough of full pit toilets as she says the municipality only drains them every six months, she says. Although she is just one of over 55000* residents in Mangaung Metro Municipality who is battling with the over-full pit latrines, she says the metro is failing her. She says she has reported her toilet problems to the civic centre but the draining trucks do not come, and when they do they skip her house.

Zolile Mancotywa, addressing the community of Mokwena Location, says municipal trucks are broken and the new ones are being stolen.

Members of the community are now forced to be neighbourly and share toilets when theirs are full beyond capacity as the metro has too few trucks operating in Thaba Nchu.

“The investigation is underway for two vacuum trucks which were stolen in November,” he said. Mofokeng says the municipality prioritises the elderly.

Patrick Monyakoane, who is also the MMC for Transport and Public Safety, promised the community the trucks would start draining their toilets once they have serviced all the remote villages and they “have the back up of trucks from Botshabelo and Bloemfontein”.

Mancotywa says the metro aims to eradicate pit latrine toilets because they are not easy to maintain. – Health-e News.

* = number provided by deputy executive mayor Thabang Masoetsa.