The Makhado Pastors Forum is currently accusing the Makhado Municipality of ignoring the needs and interests of Christians in the Louis Trichardt region.

According to Pastor TP Mashau, since 2003 the Municipality has been delaying the Pastors Forum’s application for purchasing sites both in town and in Tshikota.

He claims that there are only three congregations for people from the historically disadvantaged communities with legal sites in both Ward 20 and 21 of the Louis Trichardt region.

Mashau claims that most congregations except the Dutch Reformed and the Lutheran Church at Tshikota have been worshipping God at the classrooms of the Masedi Combined School and the community hall of Tshikota.

Pastor Mashau added that, in January this year, congregations that were using the school premises as their gathering place received letters from the school management that moved their frustrations from bad to worse.

He said that the letter was instructing the congregations to evacuate the school premises. Only after negotiations were they again allowed to gather at the school every Sunday until the end of March this year.

"Because our period of grace at the school has expired, some of us have illegally erected shacks and tents on the streets as well as on the sites lying empty at Tshikota. We´ve done all this out of frustration. The municipality does not care about us and we are always scared that they might come at any time and bulldoze our illegal structures," he said. Mashau said that it seems as if the municipality does not value the importance of congregations at Tshikota.

"When we request or submit our applications for sites, we are told about rezoning. To our surprise, there is no talk of rezoning for business and residential purposes. We are very much aware that the issue of rezoning has been cleared by the provincial government," he said.

The director community services at the Municipality, Mr Peter Ntsieni Magwala, said that the Pastors Forum’s request has been referred to the executive council as an item for a recommendation.

"We are just waiting for the Exco to confirm the minutes. We are going to auction three sites very soon for the congregations at Tshikota at a reduced price. It is not true that, as council, we don´t care about congregations," he said.