MyPE

Community Business Directory, Event Listings, News and Views from Gqeberha, Nelson Mandela Bay

DA will contest Makana by-election to bring freedom, fairness and opportunity to Ward 1

By

Dear MyPE

The Democratic Alliance will be contesting the ward 1 by-election in Makana Municipality on the 22nd of July.

Makana Municipality requires responsive leadership, hard work and quality services to get it back on track.

The DA believes we can bring freedom fairness and opportunity to the residents of a forgotten ward in a dysfunctional municipality.

Mayor, Zamuxolo Peter, has presided over the collapse of the Makana municipality since 2011 with Ward 1 being among the hardest hit communities.

Riebeek East, the largest town in ward 1, is the home of the Mayor and is plagued by a chronic lack of service delivery.

The road into Riebeek East has not been maintained for over a year and has deteriorated to the point that it has placed the lives of commuters at risk. The road is now finally being upgraded after unrelenting pressure from the DA and concerned residents

Two contracts to deliver services to Kwanomzamo in Riebeek East have major question marks around them.

The contract for the upgrade of the access road into Kwanomzamo has been left incomplete with materials strewn along the gravel road. This tender was awarded in September 2012 and the project was never completed.

Even more concerning is a contract awarded to construct toilets in Kwanomzamo. This contract was awarded in 2013 and the project remains incomplete to this day. Some structures have no roofs, no doors and even no toilets while building materials are piled up in the backyards of residents. This contract was awarded in spite of the fact that there is insufficient water in Riebeek East and zero reticulation infrastructure or waste water treatment plant.

This situation is an assault on the dignity of the residents of Kwanomzamo and the DA will not rest until it is resolved.

I have written to the auditor general asking him to investigate the awarding of these two contracts to ensure that any wrong doing is brought to light and those responsible are brought to book.

The awarding of tenders to contractors who do not or cannot complete the work undermines the principle of fairness that should be upheld by a local government. The freedom of all residents depends on the delivery of quality of services delivered by their council. It is only through ensuring fairness and freedom that our citizens can access real opportunity.

The DA believes that Riebeek East and surrounding communities deserve better.

We will now embark on an extensive process to identify the right candidate to bring freedom, fairness and opportunity to Ward 1.

Regards

Andrew Whitfield

The following two tabs change content below.

Port Elizabethan

This author is a 'catch-all' for occasional articles and letters written to MyPE. The Author of each article can be found in the signature at the bottom of each individual article.