Mayor Eugene Johnson sets developmental agenda – NMBM

MEDIA
STATEMENT BY EXECUTIVE MAYOR EUGENE JOHNSON AT THE GQEBERHA CITY HALL COUNCIL
CHAMBER ON TUESDAY, 09:30.

Ladies
and gentlemen,

Good morning. I trust that you are well and ready for this
important day. Thank you for honouring our first official press conference of
the tenth administration of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. I decided to
move this media engagement to an earlier time slot in order for the Nelson
Mandela University to enjoy the spotlight when opening the first medical school
in the region, later today. This shows that we are capable and able to bring change and progress for this
region.

Prospective medical professionals had to either enrol at
the Walter Sisulu University or relocate to the Western Cape, Gauteng, Free
State or Kwazulu-Natal to qualify as doctors.

I will convey a message of congratulations on behalf of the
municipality and its residents later today and wish them well as the first
group of medical students start their journey of personal growth and
self-improvement in our city.

Ladies and gentlemen, let me start by saying that the plans
for our first 100 days in office, outlined in this address are consolidated
through continuous engagements with our coalition partners. These plans are
aimed at better service delivery in our metro and to advance the pro-poor
policies that we have promised in our respective manifestos.

Public
Health

I am sure that our Mayoral Committee Member for Public
Health, Cllr Thsonono Buyeye, and his team will use the establishment of the
new faculty as an opportunity to gain knowledge to build this crucial service
delivery department. We do have a Memorandum of Understanding in place with the
university to exchange ideas and work together. My vision for this
administration is that a culture of research and development must be instilled
in all departments to bring new innovations to the table and to place our municipality
in the forefront of new developments in local government.

We are
capable and able to continue the fight against COVID-19 by
continuing to follow the clear directives set by our national government and to
encourage our residents to vaccinate, wear masks and adhere to social
distancing guidelines. We
unfortunately lost more than 4000 residents to the coronavirus, since the
global pandemic hit our shores. With the festive season around the corner and
the identification of a new variant, efforts to keep the positive cases down
must remain high from all stakeholders. In line with our commitment to
safeguard our communities, our Disaster Management Department will ensure that
the COVID-19 Joint Operations Centre remains operational and on high alert. The
Metro Command Council will continue to be the local implementing agent of
national and provincial directives. All these efforts will be supported by the
enforcement of COVID-19 regulations.

MMC Buyeye, we can make
our city cleaner by continuing to turn illegal dumpsites into useful spaces for
communities. Your governance experience will be called upon to guide the
building of capacity in that department to be more responsive to the needs of
our community. Inspections at food outlets must be intensified to ensure that
our residents are not exposed to hazardous foodstuffs. Your department must
also investigate the recent reports of children dying, after eating noodles.
Any information we get, must be handed over to the police, to provide closure
for the grieving families and to avoid similar tragedies in future.

We are
capable and able to ensure that hawkers are adequately trained
to handle food correctly and that they are continuously monitored to ensure
compliance with legislation and cleanliness standards.

Job opportunities through recycling initiatives to keep
waste off our landfill sites must be explored and the development of the
recycling sector must be explored in our city.

Infrastructure
and engineering

I intend to work closely with our Mayoral Committee Member
for Infrastructure and Engineering, Cllr Stag Mitchell, to intensify water
augmentation measures as we are firmly entrenched in a drought with our dams at
dangerously low levels. The 363 million set aside to ensure borehole drilling,
bulk meter installations and repairs to pipelines, amongst others, are
prioritised. Continuous engagements with national treasury are ongoing to make
up for the financial shortfall that we have to address the crisis adequately.

We are
capable and able to unite our residents in the crucial need to
drastically reduce water consumption as the demand far outstrips the available
water supply that we have left in our dams. MMC Mitchell, it cannot be that
water leaks are left unattended for days and months. We need to respond faster.
We can only do so if critical vacancies are filled. I am demanding of you and
your team to ensure that you have enough capable employees to do the job at
hand. Unemployment increased to 42% in Nelson Mandela Bay and yet there are
still vacancies in critical departments that take forever to be filled. This
cannot be. Positions in the Directorates
of Roads, Storm water and the Integrated Public Transport System must be filled
as a matter of urgency as well. The fixing of potholes remain a serious
concern. If we require additional teams to be put in place to ensure potholes
are fixed speedily, then it must be done as a matter of urgency.

Swimming pools are already
closed and we will be engaging with the local sporting fraternity to close
facilities with high water usage. Interaction with the local tourism industry
must also take place to remind visitors that we are a water scarce region and
that we require adherence to water restrictions. We are capable and able to overcome this crisis if we join hands as
a collective.

I am tasking Acting City Manager, Dr Noxolo Nqwazi, to provide
reports with clear recommendations regarding excessive spending on overtime and
we will be studying the latest Audit and Risk Committee reports to ensure that we
identify and manage institutional risks effectively.

Safety
and Security

Under the guidance of
Mayoral Committee Member Lawrence Troon, the Safety and Security will convene a
drought Joint Operation Centre and establish an Interdepartmental Disaster
Management Committee as per Council Resolution. They have assured me that the
Metro Police will not be lenient with anyone found to wastewater from car
washes to swimming pool owners, businesses or residents. We all have a
responsibility to conserve this valuable resource.

MMC Troon assured me he
will be looking closely at recent tenders awarded in his department. I welcome
his enthusiasm and encourage all MMCs to be vigilant when it comes to the spending
of taxpayer funds. We are capable and
able to root out corruption and restore trust in governance.

Vandalism of municipal
infrastructure must be tackled with innovative ideas to enhance the policing of
assets with technological solutions. An efficient operational plan must be put
in place to accompany the installation of CCTV cameras and alarm systems.

Budget and Treasury

We are capable and able to assist more residents in need of free basic
services as the economic meltdown as a result of the pandemic as well as an
increase in unemployment, had a devastating economic impact on our city. The
Assistance of the Poor programme must be rolled out to more deserving
households. We cannot allow our residents to be crippled by economic hardship
while we have a mandate and programmes to assist them. An item will be tabled
at our next council meeting as part of the municipality’s Debt Relief Policy to
consider a once-off amnesty for defaulting households.

Late payments of invoices
must become a thing of the past as we cannot be contributors to the financial
difficulty of local businesses. The national treasury guideline of payment
within thirty days after receipt of invoices must be met as a matter of course.

Mayoral Committee Member
Tukela Zumani and his team must ensure that the financial sustainability of our
municipal coffers continues. The impact of the credit rating downgrade of our
country, the disruption of economic activity due to the pandemic enforced
lockdowns, load shedding and a drop in the revenue collection rate, demand greater
innovation from management and the leadership collective.

We are capable and able to stop the under-expenditure of maintenance
budgets intended to fix aging infrastructure and to provide a favourable
environment to do business.

Chief Financial Officer, we
are still feeling the pinch of the R120 million grant funding that we lost
during the previous administration. Engagements with National Treasury must be initiated to see if those
funds can still be accessed. Our city can ill afford to lose money due to inefficiency.

The R350 reconnection fee
for poor households represents a heavy burden that deserves our attention,
especially in this difficult economic climate.

Economic Development, Tourism and Agriculture

Mayoral Committee Member
for Economic Development, Tourism and Agriculture Mkuseli Jack and his
counterpart in Budget and Treasury, hit the ground running when they stepped up
to the plate to address the recent protest action by emerging and small
businesses in the city.

I will be leaning heavily
on MMC Jack to ensure that local economic development is prioritised to turn
the fortunes of local businesses around and to unblock bottlenecks hampering
investments in the local economy. The implementation of the Local Economic Recovery
Plan and the emerging enterprise development plan must be prioritised to ensure
greater prosperity for those willing to create jobs and helping us build a
prosperous Nelson Mandela Bay.

The incubation programmes
must include emerging and small enterprises located in the townships. We would
like to see the implementation of Enterprise Development Centres being
implemented in the Northern Areas, the Kariega-Despatch area and township
areas.

MMC Jack we need to partner
with business and other stakeholders to implement sustainable agricultural
programmes. A large percentage of our population is food insecure. Initiatives
must be put in place to improve the material conditions of those affected by
poverty.

Plans to create 900 job
opportunities for young people as water ambassadors, tourism ambassadors and as
caregivers for the elderly are in place as part of the Presidential Stimulus
Programme.

Executive Director Anele Qaba, we need to
engage Transnet regarding the relocation of the Manganese Ore facility to the
Port of Ngqura.

The development of the ICT sector must also be
prioritised as part of a citywide initiative to harness opportunities emanating
from the Fourth Industrial Revolution. We
are capable and able to create a world-class and prosperous coastal city.

Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture

I have been assured by the
Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture Directorate that money is available to
maintain the sporting facilities in our communities. However, we need to
establish a social compact with the respective communities, where these
facilities are being built, to ensure that they are not vandalised.

We are demanding greater
emphasis on the development of local artists and the creation of a conducive
environment for artists to prosper. There should not be a reason for artists to
leave the region to make a living. Mayoral Committee member Bassie Kamana
understands that our work is cut out to address the rampant vandalism of
municipal sporting facilities. We are in the process of developing a comprehensive
institutional plan to deal with this problem.

We are capable and able to install water-wise systems at all
new sporting facilities, roll-out artificial surfaces for sports fields (where
possible) and to connect ablution facilities with existing boreholes to save
water.

Human Settlements

The title deeds heaping up
at our Human Settlements Directorate must be handed over to the rightful
owners. When houses are handed over, the handover of title deeds must not be
delayed.  Housing delivery must be
intensified to deal with the backlog. It is estimated that migration to urban
areas will increase even more over the next decade. This means that our housing
delivery programme will be further challenged with the ever increasing need of
economic migrants from rural areas. The fast-tracking of catalytic projects
must therefore be prioritised.

We are capable and able to spend the R46,6 million set aside to build more than 350
housing units and directly create jobs in the process.

Corporate Services

President Cyril Ramaphosa
regularly calls for the establishment of a capable and professional workforce.
Member of the Mayoral Committee Makhi Feni must ensure that our labour
relations are improved and that disputes are addressed internally more
efficiently. Our leave records must be administered correctly and exorbitant
overtime costs must be addressed. Skills gaps must be identified and
initiatives must be developed to improve productivity of the workforce. We are capable and able to provide
efficient services if our workers are committed to do their tasks and all our
corporate processes are streamlined and more efficient.

Roads and Transport

The public transport sector
must continue to be redeveloped as part of the Integrated Public Transport
System and the roll-out of the bus system to other areas must be prioritised.
Our residents deserve a reliable, safe and decent public transport system.

The maintenance of road
infrastructure is a major priority for our administration as we cannot be
plagued with claims for damage to vehicles and other property. The Acting City
Manager must provide us with a report how much we lose due to lawsuits as a
result of not maintaining infrastructure. We would like to see a decline in the
current figure in the next financial year. The money, spent on damages, can be
better utilised to provide services for our residents.

Mayoral Committee Member
Bongani Mani, I will lean heavily on your team to fast-track negotiations with
the taxi industry and other stakeholders to ensure that the modernisation of
the transport sector continuous unabated.

Electricity and Energy

Lastly, MMC Luxolo Namette,
your department always played an important role in providing solutions for our
residents. Your team need to lead initiatives to provide a more affordable
energy mix and reduce the institution’s own electricity usage. I am aware that
you were responsible for providing internet connectivity for numerous township
areas, allowing school learners the opportunity to access valuable learning and
teaching resources on the internet.

We must ensure that we get
that programme back on track in a sustainable way.

The rising electricity
tariff from Eskom and the unreliable supply from the power utility, resulting
in revenue losses, must be countered. We need to incorporate renewable energy sources
and establish strategic partnerships with the private sector to build and own
renewable electricity plants.

We are capable and able to stop the disruption to local economic activity due to
unreliable power supply from Eskom. I understand that our own electricity usage
amounts to R150 million every year. This calls for energy saving initiatives at
all municipal buildings in order for us to save money.

The R21 million set aside
for public lighting is very important as dark alleys and streets are breeding
grounds for criminal elements. I am pleased to learn that this money will be
used to repair and replace broken or non-functioning streetlights, poles and
fittings. A total of 2300 energy efficient streetlights will be installed on both
main and residential roads.

In addition, I would like to
appeal to the electricity department, that we must improve our response times
to repair faulty street lights. We are overwhelmed with complaints of very slow
turnaround times after these faults are reported.

I was especially happy to
hear that R118 million is currently being spend on the refurbishment,
modernisation and development of the city’s electricity network.

Ladies and gentlemen, I
decided to provide this comprehensive statement to show that you are in capable
hands. All these projects are based on the five key performance areas listed in
the municipality’s Integrated Development Plan.

These are:

1.   

Basic service delivery and infrastructure development,

2.   

Municipal transformation and organisational development,

3.   

Local Economic Development

4.   

Financial sustainability and viability, and;

5.   

Good governance and public participation.

We are capable and able to fulfil the mandate given by the voting public and ready to take
the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality forward.

In conclusion. The question
on everyone’s lips needs a response. Why will this coalition government work?

The answer is that we as
partners are all very committed to service delivery, and we want to implement

 our pro-poor policies. We have a unitary goal.
We want to improve the lives of Nelson Mandela Bay residents, especially those
neglected and marginalised communities.

This government will work!
Our residents want stability and services to be delivered.

Ladies and gentlemen, I
thank you.

Executive
Mayor

Eugene
Johnson (Ms)