Comments about the Bluewater Bay Surf Lifesaving Club lease not being renewed, made by Nelson Mandela Bay Ward 60 Councillor, Thembinkosi Mafana, last week have attracted widespread condemnation.
“It is absolutely ridiculous that Councillor Mafana should make such a nonsensical statement considering that he has no control over the awarding of leases. If he tries to prevent the lease from being concluded, it would be considered political interference, which is one of the most serious misconducts that a councillor can be found guilty of. I am very concerned about that,’ said Retief Odendaal, Opposition Leader of the Nelson Mandela Bay City Council.
“The reality is that the various lifesaving clubs we have around the city absolutely do valuable work for the community. We (the Municipality) hardly give any financial assistance to those lifesaving clubs. They prevent the loss of life at the coast.
“Bluewater Bay, for example, has a very, very treacherous surf and we need to be thankful for the work that they do.”
Odendaal said he would be having a frank conversation with the MMC for Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Basi Kamana and the Metro’s Acting Director of Sport and Recreation, (Dr Khiti Ngesi) to make her aware of the situation.
“It is very important that we put any uncertainty that Councillor Mafana has created to bed,” he said.
“We have seen that time after time after time people are saved. Over the last summer season, we did not lose a single person to drowning which is testament to the work that the lifesaving clubs around the Nelson Mandela Bay do. I just want to emphasise that the majority of people that worked there over weekends and public holidays were volunteers.
“They get absolutely nothing for their civic service to the city. So, I would like to thank each and every lifesaver for so graciously giving up their time because they have a passion for the city, a passion for the ocean, and because they value the lives of the people of Nelson Mandela Bay.”
Odendaal also praised the work done by municipal lifeguards who look after safety of bathers throughout the year.
Odendaal noted that the Bluewater Bay Surf Lifesaving Club was in urgent need of attention. “But it is impossible for the club to seek donations and, for example, lotto money if proper leases were not in place.
Odendaal was not alone in his condemnation of Mafana’s utterings. Residents of Bluewater Bay took to social media to voice their anger.
One commented: “I wonder if Mr Mafana would swim in the surf at the river mouth and who he would expect to rescue him when he gets into trouble – which he will.”
Another commented that there would be many more drownings and near drownings (as there had been in the past) and his (Mafana’s) name would be associated with this.
Another said Mafana would have “blood on his hands” if he was responsible for the closure of the club.
Ironically. the Bluewater Bay Surf Lifesaving Club’s Rescue Squad was called to Brighton Beach on Sunday after a 14-youth got into trouble in the water. It took only six minutes to have a lifeguard to arrive on the scene. Meanwhile, others were preparing to launch one of the rescue craft – totally funded by the club – to assist in the search.
It turned out that the alarm was sent out only 20 minutes after the incident – by which time it was too late. As one of the rescuers said, there should be clear signage showing emergency contact numbers with a message to anyone that witnesses someone in trouble in the water to immediately raise the alarm.
“Don’t wait until the person disappears under the water. We would rather deal with a false alarm than arriving at a scene only to discover the incident took place 20 minutes earlier. We urge bathers to swim only where and when lifeguards are on duty and always to swim between the flags,” he said.
