Cape Town - The City of Cape Town has been slated for depriving the Manenberg youth of holiday entertainment as the area’s swimming pool remains closed for refurbishment purposes.
With the school holidays in full swing and youngsters looking forward to playing in the water, the community said their kids were being robbed of their holiday festivities, lamenting that the City had failed to ensure that the pool was operational before the holiday season.
Manenberg swimming pool was one of the pools in the city, including Athlone, Delft, Goodwood, Langa, Morningstar, Newlands, Parow Valley and Westridge which the City last month had minor technical and operational challenges with and was scheduled to open during the 2022/23 summer season.
Community leader Desmond Syce, who visited the pool on Monday, said it was sad that it was not “summer ready” for the community, adding that it would inconvenience many residents.
“The community is saddened by the fact that the City has once again failed the coloured communities as this is not only happening in Manenberg but across the Cape Flats. The City is bragging about how Cape Town is the best-run city in the country, but it doesn’t work for us living on the Cape Flats.
“Preference is given to pools in affluent areas where they are always summer-ready and are maintained. That is also the case during the winter season when these areas are prioritised and our communities are left to flood. The pool needs to be continuously maintained and not wait for it to be a hazard for users,” he said.
Youth Development co-ordinator Ganief Petersen said the City refurbishing the pool at this time of the year was not wise and was making their job harder. Petersen said the pool was a haven for the youth, especially during this period.
“Currently we have a stone-throwing problem in the area and the worry is that the gangs are ready to pounce on these kids because they have nothing to do and nowhere to go.
“With the current gang shootings, we also cannot expect them to stay indoors throughout the holiday. This is the only facility that our youth can enjoy themselves in as we don’t have safe playing spaces,” he said.
Community Safety and Health Mayco member Patricia van der Ross said contractors anticipated that all repairs at Manenberg swimming pool would be completed by Friday, and the pool reopened on Saturday, provided that all safety requirements are met.
She said both the kiddies’ and main pool renovations included refurbishing the basins, pool copings, decking, and underground pipework.
Van der Ross said the Athlone pool, where the pump, valve, and strainer box were being fixed, was expected to open on December 30 while the Langa pool was attempting to resolve staffing as well as the national chlorine shortages.