By Buhle Andisiwe Made
In a meeting held at St Matthew’s Church on 9 October 2023, former civil servants, military veterans, resigned teachers, and community members of various organisations travelled in the inclemency of the weather from different parts of the province to table their frustrations regarding pension funds and various issues plaguing Makhanda to the President of the United Democratic Alliance (UDM) and member of parliament, Bantu Holomisa.
Archbishop Sizwe Ngesi, leader of the Ethiopian Episcopal Church, says that he asked Holomisa to meet with the community since he is a member of parliament who meets regularly with the constituency. This is with the hope that Holomisa can help, said Ngesi and continued by saying, “IMakhanda nayilibala na? Sifuna into yokuba nathi sikhujulwe” (have you forgotten Makhanda? We also want to be remembered).
Following the visit, Holomisa penned a letter addressed to President Ramaphosa, Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola, Minister of Police General Bheki Cele, and Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs of South Africa Thembi Nkadimeng. Holomisa tabled various issues raised during the meeting in the letter, stating that “certain interventions are desperately needed”.
In the letter, Holomisa says that after meeting the community of Makhanda “to listen to their plight and complaints, it is clear that this is a community in distress who suffers from disillusionment.”
During the meeting, Holomisa reported on issues such as proposed regulations on pension benefits of military veterans, the calculations of pensions for civil servants, the re-employment of resigned teachers, access to funds for mineworkers suffering from respiratory diseases and threats to the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) and Public Investment Corporation.
Various members of the community and organisations also tabled their concerns about multiple issues in Makhanda.
Xolani Simakuhle, a member of the South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) executive committee, spoke on the issue of the move of the seat of the High Court from Makhanda, indicating that removal of the High Court from Makhanda will take away from the heritage of the town and open the door to corruption and malpractice. “With High Court relocation, it means that it is going to be influenced and infiltrated by political narratives,” said Simakuhle. He adds that the high court relocation will result in 9405 job losses. Therefore, those fighting against its removal are “Fighting for the downtrodden citizens of Makhanda,” he said.
In the letter addressed to Ramaphosa, Holomisa addresses the issue of the high Court move by stating, “The greatest bone of contention is the recommendation by the Committee on the Rationalisation of Areas under the Jurisdiction of the Divisions of the High Court of South Africa and Judicial Establishments that the main seat of the Eastern Cape Division of the High Court should be moved from Makhanda to Bhisho. This community is vehemently opposed to this decision.”
Holomisa adds, “[The community] believe that the government does not care about the economic impact this move will have on Makhanda with the projected loss of 9,000 jobs. Not only will it have a devastating effect on the local economy, but on thousands of individuals and their extended families.”
He adds that the Mkahanda community believes that the “rationalisation and bringing the court to the people is a fallacy, i.e. are they not the people and they are fearful that the offices of the Master of the High Court will follow suit.”
Another issue raised by residents during the meeting is the non-functionality of the police services. Residents added that the high crime rate in the town may be caused by high unemployment rates, especially among youth.
Holomisa addresses this issue in his letter, stating, “Crime and drug abuse plagues the society, and the non-functioning of the police station in Joza is a critical issue to them.”
Residents also spoke on the issue of poverty, referring specifically to Salem, an area just outside Makhanda and under the Makana Municipality, which has farms given to the local community; however, they have been occupied by foreign nationals who refuse to relocate. Holomisa also noted this issue in the letter.
Holomisa also addressed the lack of road maintenance in the town, stating that it “is a critical issue affecting them, and [he]witnessed this first hand,”. He added that the “Post Office has closed, which forces the elderly to travel long distances to other towns to collect their pensions.”
The community was grateful for the opportunity to express their struggles to Holomisa and hoped that the constituency would act on the letter regarding proposed interventions.
Ngesi also hopes that following the meeting, “[they]are going to be meeting with leaders across the political divide,” he said.
