Mluleki Gantso is glad the blocked sewage drain of his home has finally been fixed. Photo by Johnnie Isaac.
22 July 2014
A house in Khayelitsha stank so badly, even the neighbours complained about it. Thankfully, the City of Cape Town has unblocked the sewage drain of Mluleki Gantso’s house.
Gantso says the City ignored him for two months before finally taking action. He says he informed the municipality several times. “I hired a local handyman with some plumbing knowledge but that did not solve the problem,” he explains.
It was when the problem was reported Khayelitsha’s Radio Zibonele that the problem got fixed.
But it wasn’t only the sewage that gave Gantso problems. “My water was disconnected in September last year because I was in arrears. After I paid it was restored but since then it has never flowed at the maximum capacity.”
He says the stink was the combination of sewage problem and blocked drain, “It was difficult because every time you wash there is dirty water to dispose, even after doing the dishes. Then, when we throw it on the grass it starts smelling,” said Gantso.
Due to these problems, Gantso said he had to dig a hole to dispose of the waste and then cover it up. He however denies that he buried faeces as alleged by neighbours but said his backdoor tenants could have done it.
Gantso says he is satisfied that the municipality finally fixed the problem.