eThekwini mayor Mxolisi Kaunda convened an urgent meeting with aggrieved residents in the Durban suburb of Reservoir Hills after they blockaded roads on Monday morning to vent their anger over the lack of service delivery.

The municipality said in a statement that the mayor visited the area after the protest.

Among the issues raised by the community include the lack of maintenance of public ablution facilities and the installation of electricity in houses that were affected by fire.

Kaunda instructed city officials to urgently attend to the complaints as they posed a health and safety risk.

“We have agreed to convene a follow-up meeting on Sunday to address other service delivery challenges in the area. The right to protest is guaranteed in the constitution. We urge members of the public to ensure such protests are not violent and do not result in property damage,” said Kaunda.  

He assured residents of the municipality’s commitment to accelerate service delivery in the area. He also urged residents to use proper channels to communicate their grievances.

He said the municipality's “doors are always open to engage with communities on service delivery issues”.

TimesLIVE