Clean-up under way

A range of City entities fanned out in Rosebank and Cyrildene to clean up the streets, unblock drains, replace broken street lights and enforce by-laws under the theme “Let’s Fix It”.
POTHOLES were filled, street lights were repaired and storm water drainage systems were unblocked when Operation Clean-up was rolled out on Monday, 19 September, in Regions B and F.

MMC Ruby Mathang encourages MMC Ruby Mathang encourages City workers to make Joburg a clean and friendly environmentPiloted in Rosebank, the operation saw City entities working together in speeding up service delivery.

Involved were the Johannesburg Road Agency (JRA), Johannesburg City Power, Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD), Emergency Management Services (EMS), Johannesburg City Parks and Pikitup. Running under the theme “Let’s Fix It”, the operation will run in various areas between 19 and 23 September.

In Rosebank, the JRA levelled potholes and paved pedestrian walkways at the corner of Keyes Avenue and Walters Street. They also unblocked storm water drains.

Also on hand were City Power employees; they laboured from morning to sunset replacing and repairing dysfunctional street lights and traffic lights.

Rosebank
City Parks and Pikitup employees also did their bit; City Parks cut long grass on the roadsides while Pikitup cleaned the streets across Rosebank and neighbouring areas.

The JMPD by-law enforcement unit was on patrol looking out for lawbreakers who dump refuse illegally. Perpetrators can be fined more than R 5 000.

Speaking in Rosebank, Ruby Mathang, member of the mayoral committee responsible for development planning and urban management, said the initiative is a catalyst to ensure effective urban development.

A gas cylinder is confiscated in CyrildeneA gas cylinder is confiscated in Cyrildene“We need to transform Johannesburg into a clean, friendly and thriving city,” he said. “This is a major city in the country and the whole of Africa; we must work together to make it an attractive place for business and tourism.”

He told employees from various entities that through hard work and dedication the City can achieve its 2040 goal. “It is through you, our foot soldiers on the ground, that we can make the 2040 dream come alive.”

Region B
Echoing Mathang’s sentiments, Promise Moyo, the Region B manager: urban management, said the region will continue fostering relationships with City entities to ensure that service delivery flows. “We want to make Joburg and Region B in particular a place where people want to live and work.”

Region B encompasses Auckland Park, Hyde Park, Sandhurst and Dunkeld, among other areas.

The second leg of the operation was staged in Cyrildene, in the eastern part of Johannesburg, on 20 September.

City Power on hand to attend to illegal connectionsCity Power was on hand to attend to illegal connectionsCyrildene forms part of Region F. Here City Power employees went hands-on; they disconnected illegal connections and repaired electricity meters. Many businesses were forced to close, as they operated on illegally connected electricity.

The JMPD’s search for stolen electricity cables did not yield any results, but they managed to recover two top- of-the-range BMW vehicles suspected to have been stolen.

Representatives from EMS’s Fire Department were also hard at work. Dennis Tshabangu, a station commander at the Cyrildene Fire Station, conducted site visits to local restaurants to ensure compliance with safety by-laws. EMS and JMPD officials’ confiscated a number of gas bottles in various restaurants.

Kabelo Mphafi, the manager of service delivery in Region F, said the City is committed to enforcing by-laws. “We mobilised law enforcement agencies to ensure that we maintain law and order,” he said.