AN OPEN LETTER TO SOUTH AFRICA.
After hearing Chris Pappas speak about the state of roads in KZN, I realised he wasn’t exaggerating — he was describing our daily reality in Kamberg. His message wasn’t political. It was the truth. And it’s time the rest of the province listened.
KAMBERG IS BEING SACRIFICED — AND WE ARE TIRED OF SUFFERING IN SILENCE
My name is Stephen, and my family and I run Qambathi Mountain Lodge in the Kamberg Valley. I am writing this letter publicly, not because I want attention, not because I enjoy drama, and not because I have time to waste, but because for 6 years this community has tried every private channel available, and government has ignored every single one of them.
I am writing this because if we don’t speak up loudly, nothing will ever change, and the valley we love will be left to collapse.
What’s happening in Kamberg is not a “small issue”.
It is not a “rural issue”.
It is not just “potholes”.
What’s happening here is the slow death of an entire community — and nobody in power seems to care.
THIS IS NOT JUST ABOUT ROADS — THIS IS ABOUT LIVES, SAFETY, AND DIGNITY
For people who don’t know the area, Kamberg is one of the most beautiful valleys in South Africa. It’s a place where families have lived for generations, where farmers produce the food that feeds this province, where small lodges and guesthouses keep the local economy alive, and where thousands of visitors travel every year to experience the Drakensberg.
And yet the single road that connects all of us to the outside world the P164 has become a national embarrassment.
Let me repeat that clearly:
16 kilometres under rehab,
R215 million budget.
More than two years of “work”.
Zero tar.
Zero completion.
Zero accountability.
In every direction you look, this road tells the story of a state that has collapsed, and taken us with it.
THE HUMAN IMPACT: WHAT LIFE ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE ON THESE ROADS
This is not dramatic. This is not exaggerated. This is daily life:
* Schoolchildren pushing taxis out of mud in the rain.
* Milk tankers jack-knifed because the road surface turns to clay.
* Farmers unable to get feed delivered.
* Elderly residents stuck at home because they are too afraid to drive.
* Car suspensions and tyres destroyed — repeatedly.
* Guests phoning crying because they can’t get through the road safely.
* Luxury vehicles, low cars even tractors getting stuck.
* Residents using private tractors to rescue strangers.
* Staff walking dangerous distances when taxis can’t reach them.
* Tow trucks becoming the most common sight in the valley.
* Emergency vehicles unable to reach people quickly.
We’ve even had wedding bookings cancelled because the roads were too dangerous, That was someone’s salary, someone’s school fees, someone’s groceries, someone’s chance at a better life.
This isn’t just an inconvenience.
This is economic sabotage.
This is dangerous.
This is heartbreaking.
And worst of all: This is preventable.
OUR COMMUNITY HAS DONE EVERYTHING HUMANLY POSSIBLE
If anyone wants to accuse us of “just complaining”, let me stop you right there.
We have the receipts.
We have the photos.
We have the videos.
We have the voice notes.
We have the WhatsApps showing YEARS of reporting.
The file we have kept — which runs from 2019 to 2025 is hundreds of pages long.
It documents every collapse, every accident, every blocked road, every exposed pipe, every section washed away, every warning sent to officials, every promise made, and every promise broken.
And what did we get in return?
“I’ll follow up.”
“We’re waiting for Head Office.”
“The committee hasn’t sat yet.”
“We can’t give a date.”
“We have no resources.”
“We’ll patch a few holes.”
“We’ll look into it.”
Four years of this.
Four years of excuses.
Four years of nothing.
This is not a community that sits back.
This is a community that BEGS, assists, coordinates, and even offers equipment, labour, and engineering support
We do our part.
Government doesn’t do theirs.
THE P164: A CASE STUDY IN FAILURE
Let’s be blunt.
Government can blame rain.
Government can blame contractors.
Government can blame budgets.
Government can blame “processes”.
But the truth is right in front of us:
If a country cannot fix 16 kilometres of road in two years, something is deeply broken.
Meanwhile, the rest of the world builds:
160 km ocean bridges
high-speed rail lines
underwater tunnels
International airports
… in the same amount of time.
What did we get?
Clay, mud, danger zones, bypasses, and shredded tyres.
This is not just embarrassing.
This is humiliating.
For us as citizens.
And for South Africa’s image globally.
TOURISM IS NOT JUST NICE TO HAVE — IT’S LIVELIHOOD
As a lodge owner, I can tell you the truth:
We cannot grow tourism in Kamberg anymore.
Not with roads like these.
Not with guests turning around.
Not with cars being destroyed.
Not with people fearing for their lives.
Not with ambulances unable to reach us
Tourism creates jobs.
It feeds families.
It educates children.
It keeps small towns alive.
And right now, roads like the P164 are KILLING tourism.
And when tourism dies, everything around it dies too.
THE IMPACT ON FARMERS IS JUST AS DEVASTATING
Farmers cannot get feed or machinery up these roads.
Their trucks get stuck.
Drivers risk their lives.
Livestock deliveries are delayed.
Milk tankers are damaged.
This isn’t bad luck.
This is bad governance.
Agriculture and tourism are the backbone of this valley.
Both are being strangled.
AND STILL — WE HAVE HOPE. BUT HOPE IS RUNNING OUT.
We love this valley.
We love its people.
We love the mountain air, the rivers, the wildlife, the culture, the heritage.
We are not giving up.
But we are tired — tired of begging, tired of being ignored, tired of paying rates and taxes for services we never receive.
We are tired of watching our staff suffer.
We are tired of watching guests risk their safety.
We are tired of watching trucks slide off roads that should have been fixed years ago.
We are tired of feeling like second-class citizens in our own country.
We are tired of empty promises.
TO THE KZN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORT
Explain to us how R215 million results in zero tar.
Explain to us why two years of “work” has made the road WORSE.
Explain to us how schoolchildren pushing taxis is normal.
Explain how businesses must survive when guests can’t reach them.
Explain the delays.
Explain the silence.
Explain the excuses.
We have years of proof that we have done everything we can.
Now it’s your turn.
TO TOURISM SOUTH AFRICA AND PROVINCIAL LEADERSHIP
You cannot promote rural tourism while ignoring rural roads.
You cannot talk about upliftment while the access to these communities crumbles.
You cannot expect guesthouses, hotels, lodges, and farmers to create jobs when infrastructure is collapsing around them.
South Africa is better than this.
Our people are better than this.
But we cannot do it without government doing the basics.
WE ARE NOT ASKING FOR PERFECTION.
WE ARE ASKING FOR SURVIVAL.
Fix the roads.
Keep your promises.
Respect this community.
Respect the workers.
Respect the guests.
Respect the taxpayers.
Respect South Africa.
We are not the enemy.
We are not difficult.
We are not entitled.
We are South Africans begging for the simplest thing:
Safe, functional, basic infrastructure.
Kamberg has been patient.
Kamberg has been respectful.
Kamberg has been cooperative.
Kamberg has been ignored.
Enough.
*KAMBERG DESERVES BETTER.
KZN DESERVES BETTER.
SOUTH AFRICA DESERVES BETTER.
Whether this letter reaches 100 people or a million, I hope it starts a conversation our leaders can no longer ignore.
We love this country.
But it’s becoming increasingly hard to live in it when the systems that are supposed to protect us simply don’t work.
Fix the roads.
And give this valley a future.
Stephen Qambathi Mountain Lodge
Kamberg, KwaZulu-Natal
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