Residents and businesses are reminded of the Rand Water’s infrastructure maintenance which continues in July The maintenance work is set to continue until Sunday 30 July and during this period the City of Ekurhuleni will continue providing water tankers at strategic points to ensure residents have water for domestic purposes Below is the maintenance schedule indicating the areas that will be affected: Terms and Conditions Our Journey Siyakhokha RFQ's Open Tenders Annual Reports Queue Management System By-laws Ekurhuleni Aerotropolis GDS 2055 Tender Awarded 10177011 458 0911Dial 112 from your cell phone (all networks) Please check your email and enter your one time pin below:   Open in Gmail Sorry there was an error loading the audio Getting drinking water is a daily struggle for families in Phomolong informal settlement in Mamelodi with long queues of people waiting with containers for the water tanker to come When GroundUp visited on 28 July 2024, men, women and children were patiently waiting at a local park with empty buckets and other containers. Another group of people were waiting on an open field on the other side of the settlement.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Several women had babies strapped to their backs despite the cold and wind there are about 1,050 stands in Phomolong and more than half have taps in their yards But residents say water only comes through the taps in the middle of the night They say they have been battling to get water since the beginning of the year City spokesperson Lindela Mashigo said the City sent three tankers to Phomolong three times daily to provide water to residents But people in the water queue told GroundUp that the City sent one water tanker to each site “I have been waiting for water since 8am this morning,” said Mapule Masimula who was sitting on the ground at the park breastfeeding her three-month-old baby I’m worried that my baby will get sick because of the cold weather I really need water to cook and wash school uniforms for my other two children.” Another resident, Godfrey Mabaso, said he did not have a wheelbarrow but carried his buckets by hand.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads “I have put eight buckets in this queue,” said Mabaso I also wonder if I will be able to fill all these buckets if it comes because one tanker is not enough for all of us.” told GroundUp that many elderly people battled to get water from the tankers as everyone scuffled to fill their containers before the water ran out “I feel very sorry for our old people and I wish the municipality could fix our taps,” said Mailula Some residents had given up queuing and were pushing wheelbarrows loaded with containers and walking to other sections of Mamelodi in the hope of finding a tanker elsewhere Khensani Baloyi and her daughter make their way to another section of Mamelodi to look for water “I think it is better to go elsewhere because one tanker is not enough for all of us,” said Khensani Baloyi “We have been struggling like this since last year The amount of water I will fetch at other sections will also not be enough And pushing a wheelbarrow for a long distance is tiring.” Mashigo said the provision of water was not demand driven “It is dependent on the availability of budget He said many parts of the city had not had water in late July because of infrastructure maintenance by Rand Water Mashigo said the City had allocated more than R28-million for the construction of water and sewage reticulation to the 1,051 stands in Phomolong The contractor had started the work in January but had stopped in March because of land “invasions” 568 stands had taps and 502 stands had been connected to the sewage system Toilets would be installed by another contractor Meanwhile residents were using chemical toilets placed by the City on the streets Mashigo referred us to the City’s head of Human Settlements Chipu told GroundUp: “The project stopped because there were people sitting on those stands and they needed to be relocated first The City was aware there were people in those stands before the construction work started But (we) thought they would soon be relocated to other land but that did not happen as there was no land The acquisition of land is done by the Gauteng provincial department (of Human Settlements).” Chipu said the City had recently concluded negotiations and people who had “invaded” the Phomolong stands would soon be relocated to Pienaarspoort First published by GroundUp Proudly brought to you by ANC corruption. Unable even do the minimum job of ensuring water supply and then Cyril wants to talk about “renewal” because their support is declining. It seems we have a parliament full of degree holders who cannot link lack of service delivery to declining votes. The keyword being “informal settlement.” This implies that they’re illegally living on land which is by definition not serviced. This is not the fault of the municipality. ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " Given that 4 conditional grants amounting to R963 million should have been utilized to upgrade informal settlements such as Phomolong only 20,56% of the total budget was spent at the end of the second quarter The third quarter is about to end and 75% should have been spent residents from the surrounding area temporally invaded the land in Phomolong the situation was resolved peacefully as the municipality agreed to allocate plots in Phomolong as soon as they become available During 2021/2022 tensions again flared as there was no movement from the municipality to solve the crisis The municipality had to return R500 million due to grants not being spent R125.9 million was received as a rollover grant In terms of grants and the money lost due to underspending within the current Adjustment Budget – The local Government Equitable share has decreased by R 6.7 million Urban Settlement Development Grant by R 5.4 million and Programme and Projects by R 3 million Conditional grants such as the Neighbourhood Development Partnership Grant (NDPG); the Informal Settlement Upgrading Grant (ISUG); the Public Transport Infrastructure & Systems Grant (PTISG) and the Urban Settlement Development Grant are all conditional financial allocations intended to address the land and basic service needs of an increasingly urbanised population This laissez-faire attitude of the ANC-led municipality to address the human rights of citizens to have access to adequate infrastructure and basic services because of corruption fraudulent housing allocations and the mismanagement of public funds cannot be tolerated anymore While provinces are responsible for housing municipalities are responsible for creating a public environment conducive to housing development including the provision of bulk and internal engineering services The Housing Act also sets out a process whereby municipalities can be accredited to administer any national housing programme The roles and responsibilities of the three spheres of government provided for in the Act are further detailed in the National Housing Code The DA will continue to hold the municipality accountable and increase pressure for full grant expenditure informal settlements such as Phomolong will be integrated into the greater Mangaung and no longer be an isolated settlements forgotten by the ANC until the next election Democratic Alliance, registered non profit organisation in South AfricaReg No: 011-895 NPO Dumping families like refuse in open spaces by the ANC-run government is a serious human rights abuse People of Extension five Phomolong at Winburg were allocated unserviced sites prior to the 2021 Local Government Elections with empty political promises of houses and basic services are forced to relieve themselves in buckets and emptying them in fields where their children play They have no electricity and have to beg for water from other residents in Winburg who themselves receive sporadic supplies of water from the Masilonyana Municipality The human rights abuses of Phomolong residents are similar to many others across the Free State In reply to the question by the Democratic Alliance in the Free State Legislature indicated that a business plan has been approved with geotechnical assessments underway and a service provider appointed He indicated further that the Department of Minerals and Energy approved the electrification of 540 stands residents are stripped of their dignity and are living without basic services in what should be classified as a disaster area The ANC continues to put cheap pre-election promises above the dignity and human rights of the people of the Free State The conditions of the residents of Phomolong will be contained in a report being compiled for the South African Human Rights Commission among many other examples and impacts of environmental water and sewage related human rights abuses by the ANC-run government in the Free State registered non profit organisation in South AfricaReg No: 011-895 NPO Debris was removed from inside the stormwater drainage system at Ubuntu Street in Phomolong This is part of the City wide campaign of cleaning of stormwater channels to reduce the risk of flooding According to Roads and Stormwater Thembisa Manager residents are major role players to assist by reporting blocked stormwater drains and to refrain from throwing debris into the system “We have embarked on a drive of clearing stormwater channels across the City and we can plead with residents to play their part,” he said Items such as paper and even building rubble have been found dumped in stormwater drains which causes floods during the rainy season Communities are urged not to dump anything into the drains Please report all stormwater, and service delivery, related issues to the call centre through My CoE App, 0860 543 000 or call.centre@ekurhuleni.gov.za Home | South Africa Several areas in Mookgopong in Limpopo are being negatively affected by water cuts Residents at Phomolong section and other extensions of the township say they do not have a reliable water supply The only tanker that delivers water has broken down Community representative Mahlomola Mathe says the Modimolle-Mookgopong municipality also attributed power cuts as a contributing factor to the persistent water shortage “We always crying regarding the issue of water and there is no solution also so when we check they say their truck engine is down so we don’t have a solution in the taps they know in Mookgopong we have got a challenge of water The mayor of the Modimolle-Mookgopong Local Municipality Marlene van Staden says the water tanker truck for the area has now been repaired the municipality is still experiencing water challenges we have a rotational program where community members receive water on a rotational basis the municipality owns one truck that delivers water in the area unfortunately the truck had a break down but our own water truck has been repaired,” explain Van Staden the water issue does not affect only the villagers but other areas in the Limpopo province A bulk water project which was commissioned by the troubled Mogalakwena Local Municipality in Mokopane has stalled for nearly five years This has left residents in and around Bakenberg without water for years Millions of rands were spent on the project but it has failed to provide even a single drop of water A bulk water project in Mokopane has stalled for nearly five years: Residents of Hennenman in the Free State have closed down the Phomolong Clinic They are demanding that the Health MEC must urgently attend to the ailing state of the clinic Residents are holding placards and picketing outside the clinic They say it has been without running water since last year cleanliness is a major challenge; and that a lack of medication and health services are also lacking Arrangements have been made for chronic patients to receive their medication from health workers who are also outside “Doctors and dentists cannot come to the clinic because there is no running water so the people of Henneman if they have a problem with their teeth they must go to Welkom to take out their teeth and get proper services because the doctor cannot work here; because the situation doesn’t allow them We are only using one toilet used by men and women There are no cleaners both inside and outside the clinic accompanied by Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi visited Phomolong Secondary School in Tembisa to offer condolences after the tragic loss of deputy principal Thembisile Ngendane Speaking to pupils, teachers and a handful of parents from the school governing body, Motshekga said: “On behalf of the department, we wish to convey our deepest condolences to the Ngendane family and the entire school community. advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads “What a painful experience to have a teacher I am told on the day of the incident this teacher was working very late… when everyone had gone home this left her exposed and later killed just outside the school premises.” Ngendane (50) was shot and killed outside the school gate on Friday Police spokesperson Mavela Masondo said the motive for the killing has not yet been established: “The incident happened at Phomolong Secondary School around 2.50pm Preliminary investigations have revealed that three gunmen driving in a white vehicle shot Ngendane through the passenger window.” School principal Hector Mashwana described the deceased as dedicated “The death of Ndengane is not only a loss to her family and the school… it is a much bigger loss to the community and department of education. Ndengane was very dedicated – she put the life of an African child first before anything else. She had adopted children from poor backgrounds within the school and she cared for them as her very own. advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads she served as the head of the department in Geography before being appointed as the deputy principal last September Under her leadership as HOD of Geography in 2020 we were nominated the best school in Geography in the district Mashwana said psychological support has been provided to help pupils and staff deal with the trauma He said further support has also been arranged for the Ndengane family been patrolling outside Phomolong Secondary and other nearby schools to help ensure the safety of pupils and staff “We are really alarmed about the safety of our children and their teachers and can’t sit back and relax We have since decided to deploy ourselves around schools in this community and on routes leading to schools We are here in the early hours to ensure children get to school safely and are safe in school premises and when they knock off,” said Vusi Khumalo schools and police could recognise us and work with us for the safety of our children and teachers so that we can avoid such incidents.” “We are generally vulnerable as a sector and this is a cause of great concern for us as far as safety in schools is concerned I also got reports from the MEC about other incidents… a principal who was killed in Lenasia and a robbery that happened in Springs “We need to improve the security systems that we have in schools We are looking at different ways… violence comes in different ways the MEC tells me that the robbers pretended to be bringing something to the school We are currently profiling because different communities have different issues we are profiling schools and their locations… to ensure the safety of everyone.”  has also condemned the shooting in Tembisa “The incident follows the tragic shooting last week in Daveyton where a Grade 10 learner shot and killed another pupil before taking his own life we send our deepest condolences to the family colleagues and pupils of Phomolong Secondary School “Our schools are not war zones… the senseless killings on school premises must come to an end.” TRIBUTES continue to pour in following the shooting of Phomolong Secondary school deputy principal She was shot and killed on Friday in Tembisa Gauteng while  driving out of the school gates It is alleged that Ngendane was gunned down by three unidentified men Phomolong Secondary school learners have placed candles in a spot where their deputy principal was shot dead.  The Geography and Mathematics teacher has been described not only as a teacher but also as a mother The former leaner from Phomolog Secondary who was also taught by Ngendane Thabo Sebola said that the school has lost the best teacher She was not only a teacher but a mother to us Phomolong Secondary School in Tembisa really lost the best teacher my former class teacher Ma’am Ngdendane,” he said Nhlanhla Ntsandzane said Ngendane was warm-hearted and always willing to listen to help learners not only with school work but with all the issues we could be facing,” said Ntsandzane Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi has visited Phomolong Secondary School on Monday He said that work is underway to find the killers of the deputy principal “a plan is in place to track the culprits.” Lesufi said the police task team have been assigned to track the killers.  He affirmed his confidence in the provincial task team assigned to apprehend the suspects involved in the death of Phomolong Secondary School’s deputy principal within the next 72 hours Lesufi further warned against the spread of false information around Ngendane’s death We can’t allow these criminals to do this to us and we fold our arms.” the MEC said that learners and teachers will be provided with counselling He further urged those with information about the shooting to inform the police Family spokesperson Yolo Ngendane said the family was shocked on Friday when they received the news about the shooting we were shocked when we received the news about the passing of our daughter We don’t even know how and why it happened because she is a calm person It hurts but we are thankful for people who come and comfort us,” he said Wiseman Ngendane said: “There was minimal acceptance to me regarding the allegation that a matric pupil shot her because the pupil failed Grade 12 to me it looks like the alleged student was used to shoot her my suspicion was that my wife was recently promoted Wiseman further added: “Thembisile was friendly to the students even some SGB members said it was an inside job.” We have detected that you are using extensions to block ads Please support us by disabling these ads blocker The funeral service of the deputy principal of the Phomolong Secondary school in Tembisa will be held on Saturday morning in Edenvale Thembisile Ngendane was gunned down outside the school gate last week Police say the motive for the killing has not yet been established and an investigation has been launched Teachers at Phomolong Secondary School fear for their lives It follows another shooting last week in Daveyton where a Grade 10 learner allegedly shot and killed his friend before taking his own life Deputy principal Thembisile Ngendane has been described as an educator who went the extra mile often working long hours in the service of education at the Phomolong Secondary School in Tembisa the Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga and MEC Panyaza Lesufi visited the school on Tuesday morning The killers did not take anything from the educator or her car Motshekga says the education fraternity is devastated by the death of 50-year-old Ngendane who dedicated her life to her learners “I visited this school during COVID-19 and I interacted with her I was quite impressed with how teachers were responded and what teachers were doing creatively sorting out administration issues when everybody was gone She had just bought a young girl a uniform with her own money She was that kind of teacher who went out of her way.” Motshekga says she hopes the culprits behind the murder will be found soon: — Gauteng Department of Education (@EducationGP1) January 25, 2022 Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga and MEC Panyaza Lesufi visited the school on Tuesday morning This after Ngendane was gunned down outside the school on Friday Victims of the Mamelodi floods in Pretoria who have been relocated to Leeuwfontein have raised concerns about the lack of water and sanitation Many have been staying at Nellmapius Hall after their homes were washed away almost two years ago Thousands of residents were displaced when floods washed away their homes in early 2022 and Phomolong were erected along flood lines and wetlands Many found refuge at the community hall after the area was declared unsafe The City of Tshwane has started to relocate the residents to Leeuwfontein Residents however say they are now faced with poor sanitation Home | Sci-tech say they do not have clean running water since March They say water delivered by tankers provided by the Modimolle-Mookgopong municipality is not enough Mayor Marlene van Staden says the level of water at the dam that supplies the area is low The municipality says water levels at Donkerpoort Dam are subsiding Van Staden says the levels normally reach alarming low levels between August and September every year Van Staden further says they have devised a schedule where areas that fall under the municipality receive water at intervals say the shortages began shortly after the announcement of the national lockdown in March Community leader Mahlomola Maake says there is only one water tanker for several sections “We are confronted with daily water challenges in extension 5 the taps are dry and water only comes out of taps after midnight.” Local residents say they have sent numerous complaints to the municipal offices “We don’t have water and we have been suffering for a long time Sometimes those who have taps get running water at night when we are sleeping We were informed by the mayor that there is no challenge but we have been living without water since the lockdown started Some of us don’t have taps; we need help.” Mayor van Staden says there have been several council sittings convened in light of the problem residents say they are forced to buy water The municipality has urged those with running water to use water sparingly Subscribe to daily business and company news across 19 industries This will be the first school to be connected to a Samsung solar power generator The generator was launched in March this year to provide easy power accessibility at an affordable price to schools and community centres across Africa "I'm delighted that we are going to be cutting back on our electricity bill which usually comes to over R8,000 a month," says Mocheke Thoka we can afford to do important things like infrastructure development without having to sacrifice anything I'm excited that our students will see that alternative energy solutions are really viable and I hope it will make them think about the importance of being resourceful and using solar power in Africa." Phomolong Secondary School is already home to Samsung solar-powered internet which serves as the school's only computer lab Samsung also donated several smart TVs and smartphones to the school to bring multimedia content into the classroom and ensure better communication between teachers Samsung identified Phomolong Secondary School as a suitable beneficiary for its education-related innovations due to its strong leadership which is evidenced by the school's consistent year-on-year matric pass rate growing from 65% to 97.5% in just two years."Phomolong Secondary School is a good partner for us because we know that our investment will make a significant impact," says Ntutule Tshenye public affairs and common shared value manager at Samsung Africa "Technology can do great things for schools but unless those schools are run by committed leaders We are pleased to be able to assist a school that is a shining example of what can be achieved despite the odds against it." Thoka says he is aiming for a 100% pass rate this year and that Samsung's ongoing support will help him achieve this goal we have seen a huge improvement in the academic performance of our students and to apply for bursaries at tertiary institutions the solar power generator will help us free up budget which can be used for more books and supplies." Choose a topic below and thereafter view all articles on the topic using the "Next >" button or swiping left Choose a topic below and thereafter view all articles on the topic using the "Next >" button or the keyboard right arrow key NEWS INSIGHTS EVENTS VIDEOS Search Home/Telecoms/Neotel announces winners of IgniteIT ICT schools competitionNeotel announces winners of IgniteIT ICT schools competitionSchools win prizes worth R200 000 IgniteIT - Winner - Kingsway Secondary School in partnership with the Department of Communications the Gauteng Department of Education and Huawei is pleased to announce the winners of the IgniteIT ICT schools competition: Kingsway Secondary School Phomolong Secondary School and Willowmoore High School The schools were honoured at a function at Neotel on Friday The winning schools will receive prizes valued at over R200 000 including an ICT laboratory and e-class solutions with interactive boards The ICT training content for the solution will be provided by the N2 Education Hub which is the partnership between Neotel and NIIT IgniteIT - Third Place (Willowmoore High School) commented: "Neotel recognises the shortage of skills in the ICT sector we initiated various projects to encourage youth and young women from disadvantaged backgrounds to become active participants and also increase the awareness on career choices in the sector The Ignite ICT schools competition is one of the projects we have initiated Neotel is proud to play an active role in bridging the ICT skills divide and playing an instrumental role in the creation of jobs for the South African economy will be encouraged to pursue careers in the sector." The competition challenged teams of learners to create entries according to one of three possible briefs using technology to design and deliver their ideas focused on "A trans-media storytelling report on distracted driving" focused on the "Journey to finding the coolest career in ICT" while third place was taken by Willowmoore High School for a report on "Road Safety Texting & Driving" IgniteIT - 2nd Place Winner (Phomolong Secondary) Chief Operations Officer (COO) at Huawei Technologies in South Africa we understand the need for breaking down barriers preventing women from being part of the ICT revolution both as part of our corporate culture and corporate social responsibility (CSR) We have turned this commitment into practice; the head of Huawei's Board of Directors is a woman with almost a quarter of the board being female directors Huawei gives preference to female candidates in selecting managers when candidates' qualifications are on an equal footing our female staff have taken up key management positions such as COO and regional directors as a testament of our promoting women in ICT." Naidoo thanked Neotel for initiating the Ignite IT schools ICT competition adding that Huawei had partnered with Neotel in the initiative because it was in line with the company's CSR mission to bridge the digital divide in SA through knowledge transfer among youth Neotel is South Africa's first converged communications network operator It provides a range of value-added voice and data services for businesses and providers and consumers using its pure-IP next-generation network powered by Neotel's high-performance fibre-optic backbone Neotel connects the major centres in South Africa to each other and to the world directly linking the country into Tata Communications' global tier one network a creative approach and flexible solutions for communications in South Africa Neotel continues to invest in developing a world-class fibre network infrastructure Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/huaweipress and YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/HuaweiPress. The school is growing and we now go up to Grade 11 and the learner population is at 1 104. We hope to have our first Grade 12 class in 2014. The staff has also grown in that we are now 31 (principal; one deputy principal; five heads of departments; and 24 educators). We also have two administrators, one cleaner and four groundsmen. Our school is situated in Tembisa, with current enrolment of 2 051. The school attained 97.50 in 2012 Grade 12 results with over 50% university endorsement. The majority of our learners come from severely impoverished backgrounds, where even the purchase of school uniforms is beyond most families' reach; the will, dedication and sheer determination shown by our learners is most heartening and their educational talent is crying out to be developed. We were motivated by the global community moving towards the digital age and endless opportunities provided by the ICT industry. A 39-year-old woman was killed by an unknown explosive device along PT Modaka Street, Phomolong, Johannebsurg, while she was trying to clear a site where illegal dumping took place, Tembisan reports said the woman was cleaning a passage between houses “She was removing rubbish and putting it into a refuse bag when an explosion happened The cause of the explosion is unknown at this stage,” Masela said The victim was taken to Tembisa Hospital by ambulance where she died The police explosives unit was called to the scene to investigate and they took samples to the forensic department in order to examine the cause of the explosion “The authorities appeal to residents to stop illegal dumping and to avoid health risks “Chemicals that form because of a mixture of different substances in the rubbish may cause a fire and if inhaled Read original story on tembisan.co.za Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Dr Mellus Tshube was laid to rest- together with his two children amid emotional scenes as friends and relatives joined the bereaved family at the Old Apostolic Church in Gaborone’s Block 10 suburbs before the burial at Phomolong cemetery over the weekend The youthful doctor reportedly killed his children before taking his own life following a marital feud in a tragedy that dropped jaws becoming a subject of social media and public discourse last week A memorial service was held on Friday but Saturday morning was a  ‘No Media’ event for pre-funeral service at Block 10 before proceeding to Phomolong Cemetery in Phakalane A close family friend of the Tshubes stated that a decision was taken not to allow media coverage since the tragic event had traumatized both families She dismissed speculation that the two families were not working closely in preparations for the funeral but we worked together to the last day of the funeral We were all caught by surprise as to what transpired if we had power we would have prevented it They didn’t want this to appear further in the media because it attracts all sorts of comments and delays the next stage of the healing process,” said the close friend She added that the Dr Tshube’s wife was receiving professional help and that her employer had also come on board to assist the employer has adjusted her work cycle to accommodate sessions or appointments with a psychologist and other professionals who may be taking part in helping her,” she added Dr Tshube was born on 19th February 1985 and his son Issago was born on 19-05-2016 followed by Entle who was born on 12-11-2020 also stated that they had preferred not to see any further media reports on the incident since it has seriously traumatized them We have had enough and we want this thing to be left to rest,” he said briefly to our enquiries on Monday afternoon Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id" "a8ad7960f465267c1b36e1ae970ce8a9" );document.getElementById("aad51f3427").setAttribute( "id" and website in this browser for the next time I comment The Voice is a print and online newspaper based in Botswana founded in Francistown in 1993 as The Francistowner Extra in 1999 it opened offices in the national capital thesouthafrican.com is a division of Blue Sky Publications Ltd Reproduction without permission prohibited Home » Schools disrupted as Phomolong residents barricade streets barricading most of the roads in the area and disrupting schools allegedly barricaded most of the streets in the suburb on Monday and the local police have opened a case of public violence the Free State police said residents also attempted to barricade the R70 road at approximately 00:00 but were thwarted by members of the Public Order Police The South African Police Service (SAPS) did not clarify what the protest action was related to but it appears to be related to protests in the area last week “The group then went in from of Phomolong Satellite Police Station and demanded to speak to the MEC and Provincial Commissioner of the Free State “The situation is still tense as a group of about 350 are gathering with main roads in Phomolong are barricaded with burning tyres, rubbish, big stones and trees,” said Captain Stephen Thakeng Thakeng said a case of public violence had been opened and the Welkom Public Order Police and Crime Intelligence units remain on the ground Democratic Alliance (DA) MP and Permanent Delegate to the National Council of Provinces for the Free State said on Sunday that the protests in Phomolong last week were over the satellite police station in the area need police presence to ensure a safer neighbourhood – the closest other station is 10km away the satellite [sic] station building belongs to the municipality and is rented by Public Works on behalf of the SAPS politicians found that only one toilet at the station was working and all the outside lights were not functional “Dedicated police officers also deserve to work in a dignified environment that allows them to do their job “The DA will be taking this up with the municipality Public Works and SAPS and fight for a better facility in the interest of both the community and the officers serving them,” said the MP 18 people were arrested in connection with a service delivery protest in Phomolong CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ARTICLES BY STORM SIMPSON Follow us on Facebook for the latest breaking news, polls - and more! 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