Today, 26 February 2019, the MMC for Development Planning, Cllr Reuben Masango, and I hosted this quarter's Inner City Partnership (JICP) Forum, which revealed that there is indeed progress being made with the rejuvenation of the inner city.
Since the beginning of our project to revitalize the inner city, I have called upon both provincial and national government to get their support for the City's efforts.
Sadly, little effort has demonstrated forthcoming from provincial and national government.
For instance, since coming into office I have sought to engage successive Ministers of Home Affairs on pressing immigration challenges affecting the City and affecting residents. In the past, requests for these engagements had fallen on deaf years.
There is also an apparent willful failure of the NPA to ensure that cases brought to them by our law enforcement officials are prosecuted.
It is astounding that justice is not served in the vast number of cases which the City has handed over to law enforcement authorities. This is not only a miscarriage of justice for the City but also for the law abiding and hardworking residents of Johannesburg.
This is quite shocking to me, since Johannesburg is the economic powerhouse of the country, and naturally, of the province.
If they had been part of this initiative, the provincial and national government would have seen the excitement of the various stakeholders, which included FNB, TUHF, Citiq Group, MADdD Programme, Joburg Inner City Tourism Association, City Kidz, Makers Way Project, Divercity Urban Renewal, Harambee, the UJ-PEETS Programme, and the Johannesburg Development Agency. Their enthusiasm reveals that there is true buy-in to the rejuvenation of the inner city.
It is clear that the private sector shares the City's vision of turning the inner city into an inclusive space where people can live, work, and play. There are various projects on the table that will see unique developments that speaks to a better quality of life for all who venture to the inner city.
With the 300 000 housing backlog that we have inherited, this initiative will provide affordable accommodation to residents, students and SMMEs working with the private sector.
One of the priorities and commitments of the current multiparty government is the renewal and rejuvenation of the inner city. This is done in collaboration with the Johannesburg Inner City Partnership Forum – which collates all the inputs of the different stakeholders that play a part in the inner city.
We are encouraged by the enthusiasm demonstrated by the Inner City Partnership Forum to work with the City in turning the inner city into a construction site, reclaiming it from criminal elements allowed to operate with impunity in the past.
The inner city is indeed turning into a construction site through these and other projects. The City has recently released yet another 70 properties for development, bringing the total number of properties released to 154.
Three developments have already been awarded tenders in Hillbrow and Newtown respectively.
I am excited to see the future of the inner city of Johannesburg. With this continued support from the private sector, I believe we will indeed turn it around to become the city we believe it can be.
We will also continue engaging with Provincial and national Government to become an active member of the inner city rejuvenation.
For media queries:
Chantelle Fourie-Shawe
Media Specialist: Office of the Executive Mayor
081 546 1014
chantellef@joburg.org.za
