Disappointing turn out for ward committee elections

ROODEPOORT – Ward committee elections for Region B and C, which were held from different voting stations around each ward on 4 February, received a generally low turnout.

The vote is part of many, which will determine a committee for each ward nationwide that consists of community members. Each member is in charge of a specific portfolio, such as housing, transport and public safety, among others.

Candidate for the housing portfolio, Norma Mbatha, said, “I decided to get involved because I have seen that service delivery has gone down and instead of complaining, it is better to take part and solve the problem.”

The committee essentially supports the ward councillor and plays a role in municipal affairs. These elections began on 28 January and will end on 11 February. The committees voted in will serve for the next five years.

Ward 97 councillor, Leah Knott said, unfortunately, there was not a high turnout from suburban areas in her ward on the day.

“It was disappointing. Only about 180 to 200 individuals came through but that was pretty average compared to other wards,” said Ward 126 councilor, David Brand. He added that only after all the wards had voted and there was no grievances with the vote, the results would be compiled.

Ward 126 candidate, Rose Tonkin, confirmed 163 votes in ward 126 were cast but many were spoilt because voters did not vote accurately. Tonkin attributes this to the lack of communication about the election and ward committees. A vote is defined as spoilt if the counting official is unable to clearly determine the intention of the voter.

Ward 126 ANC branch coordinator, Qhawe Zulu, confirmed the results were counted and released to them on the day, 4 February, but he was not sure how they would be announced.

On Facebook, ward 89 councillor, Amelia Bester congratulated the new committee for her ward. “We have a diverse group of strong individuals with standing in the community. I look forward to working together to improve the lives of our residents over the next five years. Thank you to all the residents who came out to vote today,” the post continued.

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