The City of Johannesburg is in the process of rolling out the Regional Visible Service Delivery Tour. The tour kicked off in Region A, led by the regional political head, MMC for Public Safety Michael Sun, along with officials from all departments and entities on the 28th of May 2018.
The purpose of the Visible Service Delivery Tour in the region was to inspect and resolve the two “hot” issues raised by the 14 ward councillors on behalf of the residents in the region.
The tour started at 8:00 in the morning and travelled across the entire region covering areas such as: Midrand, Fourways, Diepsloot, Ivory Park, Kanana and Rabie Ridge. Issues such as by-law enforcement, public safety, infrastructure development and maintenance, refuse clearing, illegal truck and taxi parking, tarring of roads in the informal settlements, fixing of pot-holes, grass cutting, vagrants, malfunctioning traffic lights, drug dealing hot spots, overflow sewer, illegal electricity connections, illegal land invasion, maintenance of the public cemetery, housing and the delivery of essential services such as water and electricity were inspected and addressed.
MMC Sun and the Regional Team identified the “quick wins” and the officials were given a five day turn-around time to resolve these issues. Some of the issues where capital expenditure and planning are required will be prioritised through the City’s processes.
MMC Sun said “It is important for politicians and officials to get out of their offices and deal with the service delivery issues on the ground. Some of the problems we saw require immediate attention, for example, the exposed live wires from illegal electrical connections in Diepsloot will be attended to urgently, whilst illegal truck parking and taxi parking will be issued with citations. If transgressors of the City’s by-laws remain in contravention, we will not hesitate to take the next step, which include impoundment”.
The inconsistent service delivery seen in the lack of refuse collection at the trading zone in Ivory Park must be regularised. Small traders cannot be expected to flourish if their trading environment is occupied by piles of stinking refuse bags.
The tour also highlighted the major role that community members need to play to ensure public infrastructure protection. The public toilets in Diepsloot are continuously blocked by people who throw foreign objects into the toilet. It will cost the City tens of thousands to unblock and maintain the public toilets. Tip-offs from the public will also ensure that policing resources can be focused on the eradication of drug dealing and other illegalities. A simple act of turning off a running public water tap could save the City thousands of litres of potable water, which is a precious and limited resource.
MMC Sun thanked the councillors who took the time to be part of the tour and indicated that the Regional Service Delivery Tour will be a regular event in Region A. Residents are encouraged to engage their respective public representatives in submitting their “hot” issues.
For more information contact:
Luyanda Longwe
Stakeholder Manager: Office of the MMC for Public Safety
Email: luyandalo@joburg.org.za
Tel: 061 496 0536
