Johannesburg - A disgruntled community of 70 000 residents has accused controversial Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane of ineptitude for allegedly dragging his feet over an unfenced quarry that has claimed the lives of many.
The quarry, which is situated right in the heart of the coloured community of Heidedal in Bloemfontein, was once mined by clay brick manufacturer Corobrik.
But community activist Gregory Werner said the company upped and left without rehabilitating the mine, which includes not fencing it off, a move that resulted in it being a breeding ground for criminal activities, and a site of many drowning deaths.
Werner told The Star that he had written to Zwane, pleading with him to intervene in the matter before many innocent lives were lost, but “with not even a response in the form of acknowledgement of our writing to him”.
He said Zwane’s ineptitude had left the community feeling hopeless and powerless, and exposed to deadly water and air pollution.
In an online petition to the minister, which had garnered more than 215 signatures, Werner wrote that no rehabilitation took place as required by law when Corobrik stopped its operations, “and this over the years resulted in the destruction and loss of many lives”.
“The land is not fenced and part of it is being used as a dumping site that juxtaposes a healthy and clean living environment for the Heidedal community. The law is clear on the safeguarding of unused mining sites in order to protect surrounding communities from injury and loss of life,” the petition states.
“This open and unsecured area is also a breeding ground for criminals. Over the years, many murders, rapes and other violent crimes were reported from this site.”
Werner said the quarry, on land now owned by Durban-based businessman Ted Fountain, remained attractive to young people to swim in on a hot summer’s day, “to their detriment and demise”. Just recently, the body of “another innocent young man” was retrieved from the quarry, he told The Star.
Werner called on Zwane - who is reportedly linked to the controversial Gupta family - to provide a solution to the problem by holding those responsible for the quarry’s neglect to account. “
Look, we’ve got all these wonderful acts that are meant to protect us, but there is a lack of political will to enforce them,” he added.
Attempts to get comment from Zwane's spokeswoman, Ayanda Shezi, fauled.
Fountain’s spokesman, Kelvin Beck, confirmed that Fountain was the rightful owner of the land on which the quarry was situated.
Fountain would not be commenting about the matter in the media “for now”, he added.