Klipfontein ward candidate aims to restore community’s dignity

THE Klipfontein Mission Station area is in a state of decay and community activist and ward 35 Patriotic Alliance candidate Eleanor Cloete aims to restore the dignity of her people.

Prompted by what she said was the sad state of the area, Cloete has vowed to not rest until the community of Philippi East is afforded decent service delivery and facilities like other areas. She said the community’s human rights were violated in every form.

“I became actively involved in my community three years ago when our area was left without electricity for eight months.

“Being a baker and caterer, my household was heavily affected, as I could not do any orders, putting financial strain on my household.

Getting through to officials, on the government’s level, was a daunting task and marred with red tape.

“Service delivery is also a sad story in Klipfontein as we only have the EPWP Programme, which is given to only a select few people, while the majority remain unemployed.

“As Klipfontein has existed for centuries, we have a graveyard which has existed for 320 years. Currently, it’s being vandalised and graves have started to sink in as there are no structures in place to protect our graveyard,” she said.

Cloete said Philippi East had no youth development activities, lacked infrastructure with no physical addresses, streets or house numbers. She said they were “seriously” the forgotten community.