Mayor Xaba must apologise for his Grinches

IN MY FIRST 2026 column, I cannot help but relate how eThekwini Municipality got my goat recently, and through its overbearing attitude, reminded me of the story How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

Readers may recall that Grinch, a grumpy, solitary creature, hates the joyful Christmas celebrations and decides to ruin it for the folk of Whoville by stealing all their presents, decorations, and food on Christmas Eve. But Grinch is soon to discover that Christmas is about spirit, not things, after the Whos continue singing happily, causing his heart to grow and leading him to return everything and join their feast. It's a lesson about finding happiness within and rejecting materialism, with themes of kindness, sharing, and the enduring power of the holiday spirit.

For as long as I can recall, from the days I was a little boy growing up in the family home, and continuing in my own home, it has been the tradition that we gave a “Christmas Box”, a small gift to the garbage workers who collected our domestic refuse 52 weeks of the year, come sun, wind or rain. On the Monday before this past Christmas, as soon as I heard the garbage truck on the road approaching my house, I voluntarily met the workers at the gate and handed them presents and money. It was too small a way to thank them for the drudge work that they do all year long, but the smiles on their faces showed great appreciation.

As holiday refuse services mercifully continued uninterrupted in the final week of 2025, Grinch arrived in the form of a public notice by the eThekweni Municipality, and this provoked rage in me.

“The eThekwini Municipality has reiterated that Waste Management Directorate staff are prohibited from soliciting gifts from residents during the festive season, and any such conduct will be investigated and may result in disciplinary action. The Municipality urges the public to report any such incidents. Note the vehicle registration number,” the municipality said, adding that “refuse removal services are a guaranteed service, and residents are under no obligation to provide additional rewards for services rendered”.

What rubbish? Pardon the pun. The municipality’s cold-blooded, callous and Draconian directive flies in the face of the true meaning of Christmas. Worse still the injunction is rather rich coming from the city fathers, especially given the barrage of complaints exposing corruption at City Hall. Serious irregularities and potential corruption involving the sale and purchase of sites, including community parks and sport grounds in Phoenix, were exposed after the Special Investigation Unit found there had been a corrupt relationship between the housing developers and the eThekweni Municipality officials who received undue gratification in the form of financial benefit for their unlawful conduct.

The R320 million fraud trial against former eThekwini Municipality mayor Zandile Gumede and two dozen of her co-accused continues. The case is related to an alleged irregular multi-million-rand waste removal tender dating back to 2017 when Gumede was still the mayor. She and several senior municipal officials are alleged to have manipulated tender processes in favour of certain companies that would in turn give them kickbacks. They are facing charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering.

There have been several cases and reports of eThekwini municipal officials facing severe harm, including death, after blowing the whistle on corruption. This underscores the significant risks faced by individuals who expose wrongdoing within Durban’s local government structures. Senior officials of the eThekweni Municipality sit in plush air-conditioned offices, enjoying fat salaries courtesy of ratepayers, pension, medial aid, annual leave, free parking and tea/coffee service. While some greedy city officials gorge themselves on tender fraud, the city chooses to play the Grinch, clamping down on garbage collectors who might receive nothing more than a few rand, a slice of cake, some sweets, or a cold drink in recognition of their relentless labour.

The hypocrisy is stark and staggering: corruption appears to be tolerated at the top, yet generosity toward the workers who keep the city clean is treated like a crime. Christmas is not about rules, restrictions, or the cold hand of bureaucracy. It is about giving, not just gifts wrapped in shiny paper, but giving of ourselves: our kindness, our compassion, our love. It is about caring for one another, showing consideration, and extending empathy to those whose daily labour often goes unseen. And yet, in this season of mirth and merrymaking, some city officials seem determined to cast dark shadows. While the spirit of Christmas calls us to uplift the weary and honour the humble, zealous municipal enforcers choose instead to strip away even the smallest joys of refuse collectors.

This is not just petty; it is cruel. These workers toil through harsh weather conditions and under the heavy stench of domestic refuse. To rob them of the warmth of human generosity at Christmas is to betray the very essence of the season. Christmas is meant to soften hearts, not harden them. It is meant to remind us that every act of kindness matters, that even the smallest gesture can carry immense meaning. To spoil this spirit with bureaucratic zeal is to miss the point entirely.

Durban mayor Cyril Xaba should apologise to our refuse collectors for the behaviour of Grinch-like city officials who snuffed out a cherished Christmas tradition. I am reminded of several other simple Christmas traditions of the past that have disappeared, yielding to contemporary consumerism dominated by the likes of Temu, Takealot, Amazon, Shein and others. From handmade gifts and hand-written letters posted to Santa at the North Pole to communities gathering in parks to sing carols by candlelight, these customs remind us of a slower, more communal festive season when there were no shopping malls.

Handmade presents have largely disappeared, replaced by mass-produced toys, electronics, and the rush for the latest gadgets. I have nostalgic memory of my mother paying into a Christmas Hamper Club, a kind of catalogue shopping. Each Saturday when she went to the Warwick Avenue fresh produce market, she would also go to an office in Valbro Chambers in Victoria Street (now Bertha Mkhize Street) or an office in Good Hope Centre in Queen Street (now Denis Hurley Street) to buy a stamp for a few cents which she would then stick in a book, much like the Post Office savings club that we had in schools in bygone days.

At the end of the year, the collected stamps - depending on their value - were redeemed for products in the Christmas Hamper Club’s catalogue such as crockery, cutlery, toys, small kitchen appliances and the like. It was a right royal rip-off. I can still remember the disappointment etched on my mother’s face when she would return home with a cheap tea or dinner set and find many items broken. Getting them replaced took another entire year. Items similar to those in the catalogue can be had for a fraction of the price at any China mall today.

I remember when B'nai B'rith International - a Jewish organisation – had its volunteers stepping in on Christmas Day to allow essential workers, including Christians in hospitals, to take time off and celebrate with family. Never mind that it is held that some Jews delivered Jesus Christ to be killed by the hands of lawless men.

During Christmas week, there was a tragic accident in my neighbourhood. For many years, weary men without work would gather on a low wall, their voices carrying quiet pleas to passing motorists, hoping for a chance at dignity. Then, one morning, a motorist lost control and crashed into that wall, silencing forever the life of a humble soul who had only been seeking a way to survive. Days later, as I drove past the broken stones and twisted rubble, I saw bunches of flowers laid gently by grieving residents, fragile offerings of love and mourning against the ruins of despair.

As the New Year begins, may we breathe life back into the simple kindnesses that time has dimmed, now overshadowed by the pull of consumerism. What we truly need is not more things, but more moments of connection, gestures of generosity, and the shared joy that binds us together. Happy 2026.

Yogin Devan is a media consultant and social commentator. Reach him on: [email protected]

** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media. 

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