20 Jun 2024

Councillors have implored the Gaborone City Council to adopt a multi-faceted approach to address the bad state of internal roads which they say contributes  to traffic congestion in the city.

Commenting on the mayor’s speech during a meeting on June 19, councillors argued that most of the roads in the city had potholes and therefore required adequate maintenance to avoid congestion and damage to vehicles.

Cllr Tshenolo Palai of Mosekangwetsi Ward said roads that needed more attention included the one from the bus rank and the one along Nata Timber Industries.

“Even internal roads at our wards are a concern. The problem might have emanated from the fact that the city council used a single supplier for paving bricks in all the projects, which led to them being overwhelmed,” Cllr Palai said.

Cllr Baleseng Tsoma of Tsholofelo South said potholes around BBS mall area were a challenge given that efforts to fix them never yielded results as they usually resurfaced after a short period.

On other issues, Cllr Tsoma advised the city council to segregate stalls at BBS mall according to their use.

“We have an abnormally where food stalls are side by side with hairdressing stalls, which is not a good arrangement. I also plead with the Department of Bye-law Enforcement to find proper spaces for vegetable vendors because they occupy parking spaces, forcing the council to remove them forcefully time and again,” she said.

Morula Ward councillor, Ms Khukhi Moremi indicated that solar streetlights in the area failed to work just a few months after installation through the city illumination project.

Ms Moremi also complained about the curtailed paving in the area.

“Still at my ward, the city clean-up campaign did not go as planned and the problem is that the mayor and deputy mayor’s offices have never visited our wards to explain these issues to the people as they promised,” she said.

She also appealed to the council to urgently fix the gate and walls of the Gaborone West community hall, which had been designated a polling station, before the general elections saying its current state posed a security risk.

Cllr Isaac Molefhe of Notwane Ward requested that they be furnished with a comprehensive report on the city illumination project before awarding the next tender.

“We want the report so that we can appreciate which companies did or did not do the job accordingly so that if those that failed are re-engaged, then we can be in a good position to enquire,” he said.

Cllr Nicholas Lebogang of Phakalane Ward pleaded with the Department of Bye-law Enforcement to address construction of illegal structures at Phakalane, particularly by illegal settlers who were also rumoured to be peddling drugs. Ends