The Bakerton Ballot: Political paralysis meets community policing in Ekurhuleni’s Ward 72

It is voting day, and political parties are camped underneath their brightly coloured tents at the Bakerton Community Hall in Springs. However, in this community, the Community Police Forum (CPF) has also set up their tent.

The area, Ekurhuleni's Ward 72, has been under Democratic Alliance control for the last 10 years. For the ANC, this period represents a complete collapse in local governance.

The ANC's Yaseen Hajat says the DA is entirely to blame for the failing infrastructure.

"Our service delivery has dropped by 60%," Hajat says.

He argues that local ANC leaders were deliberately prevented from repairing potholes and resolving electricity outages.

"Whatever we needed to be done, we always had a block through the DA. Because it was a ward for DA, we were tied. Our hands were tied,” he adds.

Disillusionment with the ruling structures runs deep across the voting stations.

ActionSA member Andrew Lekoatanke argues that the community has been completely abandoned by its elected officials.

"We are sick and tired of people promising empty promises," he says.

"The councillor of this ward doesn't consult with us, we don't know her. Since I have been here since 2022, I have never even met a councillor from here,” he adds.

Lekoatanke’s frustrations are that the community receives zero communication during load shedding or water outages.

"We've got an invisible councillor."

Supporters of the DA paint a vastly different picture of the ward's trajectory. Resident Nonwinile Lumayi is steadfast in her support for the incumbent party.

"I know this time DA, they are going with flying colours, and I'm proud of DA because they are changing everything here," Lumayi says.

She credits the party with fixing local roads and restoring streetlights while bringing down crime. Lumayi also praises the DA for its inclusivity, stating that the party helps poor, white, and Indian residents and operates without apartheid.

She also did not hold back when it came to the ANC, who ran the ward before the DA.

Lumayi claims that they are riddled with corruption and only care about their own families.

However, she acknowledges lingering challenges in the area, noting that she has pleaded with the DA to bring basic services to local RDP homes that still lack toilets, bathrooms, and electricity.

Amid the partisan bickering, the Bakerton CPF has stepped in as a stabilising force for local governance.

CPF member Sadah Pachidagas explains that the forum has deliberately distanced itself from the political theatre.

"What we've learnt from the last local government elections to now is that the CPF do not really get involved in politics," Pachidagas says.

"What we try and do is build partnerships with whoever wins and we hold them accountable. Building relationships and ensuring that service delivery gets delivered to our communities is the most important thing,” he adds.

To force this accountability, Bakerton CPF ward committee members now sit on the Ekurhuleni Ward 72 forums alongside municipal stakeholders.

Pachidagas admits that "service delivery hasn't been at its best," but maintains that their direct intervention ensures that residents are not forgotten once the voting tents are packed away.