It has been two months since Makana municipality has been under administration and the provincial government have taken over the financial reins.
It has been two months since Makana municipality has been under administration and the provincial government have taken over the financial reins.
This was one of the hardest times for Makana's administration, but it seemed that no one took it very seriously; nobody in that council made an effort to communicate what is happening in Makana.
The silence from the City Hall has been disturbing, I understand that it must be a daunting task to try and get things back to normal after their bank account was empty and they could not pay their own staff.
But this is what I expect from a good governing council: go to the people who put you in that council in the first place, those who trusted that you will manage their hard earned money and deliver basic services to them. It has not happened yet, no one knows if it is going to happen; if it happens I wonder if the reception from the people of Makana will be as good as when you were campaigning to get into that council.
The new administrator Pam Yako is only working three days a week because she has other things to focus on.
It will be a very difficult job to move Makana back to the top but we hope in the five months she has left there will be a good story to tell. Public participation is very important.
As a leader you get a chance to hear what your constituency wants or what is bothering them about the way you lead; if you keep quiet and don't meet with the people you are leading or tell them what is going on, then you are not a good leader in my opinion.
The people of Makana only hear through the media about what is going on in the council, which is not a good thing.
In general, people of South Africa seem to be hearing a lot more from the media than from the government leaders.
When money is misspent or lost, this should be communicated timeously to the communities, but that does not happen all.
According to the Municipal Finance Management Act, this November should be a time for the Mayoral Imbizos as part of the review of the Integrated Development Plan (IDP).
We asked the Makana spokesperson when the councillors are going to meet with the communities, but she didn't have an answer.
That is especially worrying now that there is a new person running the municipality.
We hope this important task takes place so that people can voice their opinions.
