Namib Times stopped to chat with two Walvis Bay residents, Christine and Corne, on Wednesday last week as they took matters into their own hands, shovels in hand, repairing potholes along Johnson Fwafwa Makabeng Street.
The pair said they felt compelled to assist with the growing number of potholes in their area. While they acknowledge that the municipality cannot attend to every issue immediately, they wanted to do their part to help improve the town they now call home. “Walvis Bay is such a beautiful, clean town, almost a city,” they said. “We see municipal workers working hard from early morning until late every day to keep it clean and tidy. We’ve never seen them standing around waiting for knock-off time. Every street has someone collecting litter, and refuse is collected on time.” According to the residents, the potholes have continued to become larger and deeper, prompting them to act. Having recently moved to Walvis Bay and still searching for employment, they decided to use their time productively rather than sit at home waiting for opportunities. “We thought we might as well jump in and help the community,” they explained.
Using stones swept into the deeper holes and sand recovered from roadside areas where it had accumulated through wind and rain, they have been filling and compacting potholes to improve road conditions. The pair purchased their own safety vests and gloves and work as quickly as possible, moving aside whenever vehicles approach to avoid disrupting traffic. The road, heavily affected by potholes, has become increasingly difficult for motorists to navigate.
The residents said they have been overwhelmed by the positive reponse from the public. Motorists regularly stop to thank them, while others have provided water, soft drinks, coffee, chocolate and words of encouragement. One taxi driver even stopped his vehicle, joined them for about 10 minutes and helped load sand and push a wheelbarrow because, as they recalled, he felt he wanted to contribute in some small way and was grateful for what they were trying to do. They said another passer-by was inspired by the initiative and wanted to encourage his school’s rugby team to get involved in similar community efforts.
UPDATE: Since Namib Times spoke to the pair last week, the two moved on to repairs in the Lagoon area over the weekend. Desert Dreams Guesthouse donated money which they used to buy sand on Friday. “Our old wheelbarrow also broke so we are going to put in extra money and buy a new one,” Christine told the newspaper and went on to say that their motto is, “If you come from a town where there is nothing to a town where there is something, do everything to keep that something.”
By Eileen van der Schyff
