As the end of Municipal Week draws to a close we asked local residents what they would like to ask the Executive Mayor of Makana, Zamuxolo Peter. Avuyile Mngxitama-Diko put some of the more frequently asked questions to the Mayor in this, the first part of a two-part series of our question-and-answer session.
As the end of Municipal Week draws to a close we asked local residents what they would like to ask the Executive Mayor of Makana, Zamuxolo Peter. Avuyile Mngxitama-Diko put some of the more frequently asked questions to the Mayor in this, the first part of a two-part series of our question-and-answer session.
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Q: What is Local Government Week, and what is its purpose?
A: Local Government Week means that as public servants, not only local but in all spheres of government, we must make sure that we attend to challenges facing the local sphere of government… Especially around service delivery and making sure that all projects you see on paper are delivered on the ground.
Q: A particularly pressing concern in the community is the delivery of RDP houses, what is the status of these projects?
A: Those are genuine concerns. As Makana we last built since the new era, 1995, some houses at the time up until 2007. A circular was released to stop building [and]as Makana we never built houses again. It was a call from national government to the province to not continue building because there were plans to revive the policy around the houses. The houses were size 18 square-metres, [but]by that time we wanted 40 square-meters, which we are now building. So the question of raising a concern for a very slow pace of building houses in Makana is a very genuine concern. I can assure you, we have managed to come up with a very good strategy of responding to that. Some would remember that for some time [we faced]the challenge of not having a director for infrastructure after Mr Dabula Njilo resigned, and his post was advertised and we have a director now.
Q: So who is responsible for the delivery of RDP houses in Makana?
A: Between ourselves and the province, we are the facilitators. As [the]local sphere of government, the responsibility of building houses lies with the Department of Human Settlements.
Q: What is the municipality doing about RDP houses that are falling apart and were not properly built?
A: Sometimes it is an oversight that is not properly done, at local and provincial level, to appoint contractors and to make follow-ups in ensuring that there are inspectors on site on a weekly basis or on a daily basis. So we have tried to tighten up that weakness. We are going to make sure that our inspectors and provincial inspectors… are also part of that process to make sure that the work is done properly.
Q: And what is being done to create jobs for the people of Makana?
A: Creation of jobs is not only our responsibility as Makana, as the President announced in the State of the Nation address that job creation must be a responsibility of all South African citizens. Your private sector must come on board, of ourselves also, we must come on board. I think in this case I must take the opportunity to commend institutions like Rhodes University, which are playing a very big role in terms of creating jobs for people in Makana. [The} army base and also Hi-Tec [are]employing a lot of people. As Makana we are also trying our level best within our means. We have facilitated quite a number of projects; there is a programme called Extended Public Works Programme (EPWP) which we have managed to facilitate. There is quite a number of young people and old who have been employed through EPWP. The institution, in a form of Local Economic Development led by Riana Meiring, is also creating a conducive environment for small, micro and medium enterprises (SMMEs). You don't just employ people but you can also create a platform for SMMEs to start their businesses.
Q: If the community is crying out for jobs, why is the municipality employing service providers from outside Makana?
A: We have to balance that argument because sometimes we are also guided by [supply chain management]processes. You can't laud your procurement processes by just taking people because they are local, they have to meet certain requirements or certain standards in order for them to be appointed. That [supply chain]committee satisfies itself by looking at the grades also of the local contractors – sometimes a project requires that in order for that contractor to get that particular job it must have Grade 6 or Grade 8 – and then you find that our local contractors have not yet reached that grade. So trying to address that we said; we are going to encourage those outside contractors who are well established to also forge partnerships with our local contractors so as to empower them with skills and transfer some knowledge to those local contractors. So that at a certain point they can exit and ours will be in charge of the projects… We want to create a situation whereby we prioritise the local contractors but we cannot compromise the quality of the work that must be done.
