MyCiTi services have always travelled a bumpy road in the Blaauwberg area. Taxi drivers feel they have been left out in the cold since MyCiTi buses started covering their routes and MyCiTi stations have been wrecked during strikes to get the City’s attention.
Development of the three MyCiTi feeder routes will have positive spin-offs, such as job creation, not to mention an upgrade to infrastructure. Yet, the multi-million rand project has led to infighting and finger pointing in one of the communities most in need of a project such as this one.
Albert Bobotyana and the South African National Civics Organisation (SANCO) accuses the City of being biased and siding with Inneed Projects while Inneed Projects feel they are being blocked from opportunities. And while everyone scrambles to have their finger in the pie, the community becomes more and more divided.
The City has had to play the role of the parent trying to keep community members acting like unruly children, apart. Both parties in this instance have made demands on the City and as a result the City is trying to appease everyone by dealing with them separately. This may be in the City’s best interests as the past has taught them that situations such as these can quickly turn volatile resulting in their hard work going up in smoke, literally.
