Residents have been unable to log service requests through the City App at the very moment when demand is highest. This failure has created a backlog of unreported and unattended issues, leaving dangerous conditions on our roads for extended periods. The consequences are now evident: large, water-filled potholes forcing vehicles to swerve, increasing the risk of accidents and placing lives in danger.
A reporting system that collapses under pressure is not merely a technical issue; it is a systemic failure that undermines the City’s ability to respond effectively to infrastructure damage caused by adverse weather.
This situation has been so severe that I was forced to escalate the matter directly via email to the Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility Directorate Mayoral Committee Member Rob Quintas, and the Urban Mobility Executive Director, as normal reporting channels were non-functional. This raises serious concerns about operational readiness, particularly when senior officials are not readily accessible over weekends, even as Cape Town faces weather-related disruptions.
We call on Executive Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis and MMC Quintas to urgently account for this dysfunction. Residents deserve a clear explanation of why critical reporting systems were not operational during peak periods, and what immediate measures will be implemented to ensure reliability going forward.
The City must also outline contingency mechanisms to ensure that service requests can be logged and addressed without disruption, particularly during high-risk periods such as heavy rainfall.
Failure to do so will continue to expose residents to avoidable risks and reflect a broader breakdown in infrastructure management and responsiveness.
GOOD Manifesto on Disaster Management: Supporting effective disaster management strategies.
Zesty Dragon
It is wise to remember that firefighters fight fire with water before you fight fire with fire
B@d B0y
A baby was born in South Africa. The village was very poor, and the makeshift hospital didn\’t have some necessary equipment.. such as scales.
The father however, was desperate to know the newborn baby\’s weight. After quite a bit of asking around, the hospital\’s chairman came up with an idea.
\”Five miles west, there\’s a butcher shop. The owner deals with meat, he should have a rather precise scale. You could just put your baby on the meat scale, and the weight reading you\’ll get should be pretty accurate.\”
And so the father departed westward. After much walking, with his newborn child cardled safely in his arms, he finally arrived at the butcher shop. He explained his dilemma to the shop owner, to witch the latter replied:
\”Don\’t worry, friend. It\’s not even a problem, I\’ll check it for you, free of charge.\” And so he took the child to the back, where the scale was located.
The father heard rumbling noises, and some scraping.. About a minute later the butcher came back.
\”About three pounds boneless\” He said.