fNew JHB mayor must prioritise stabilising governance and ensuring effective frontline service delivery

16 August 2024

ActionSA welcomes the election of Cllr. Dada Morero as the Executive Mayor of Johannesburg and commits to playing a constructive role in our legislative oversight capacity to ensure that restoring effective frontline service delivery to the residents of Johannesburg remains central to the new administration's work.

ActionSA has communicated that we will not be co-governing with the ANC but will use our legislative oversight capacity to engage on an issue-by-issue basis with other parties in Council, with the explicit purpose of ensuring that we contribute in a constructive manner that guarantees maximum oversight and accountability, but most importantly, that we ensure the best interests of residents are duly protected.

Central to this effort will be ActionSA’s submission of a series of motions aimed at ensuring effective frontline service delivery, including infrastructure renewal and the rejuvenation of the Inner City. In line with our commitments to residents, we will continue to engage with departments to address the current R200 surcharge imposed by City Power on prepaid users, to ensure that rate-paying citizens are not further burdened at the expense of those illegally connected to the grid.

ActionSA recognises that Mayor Morero faces an incredibly daunting task, assuming responsibility for a City plagued by widespread breakdowns in service delivery, limping City entities, lawlessness, decaying infrastructure, and a declining economic standing.

Fortunately, ActionSA has stepped up to provide the Mayor with the necessary framework to overcome this crisis and get the city back on track towards progress and growth. We offer our solutions in recognition that residents are not interested in grandstanding but in constructive collaboration to ensure that this City works.

As evidenced by the successful tenure of ActionSA President, Herman Mashaba as the Executive Mayor of Johannesburg, ActionSA’s blueprint, which we will work to ensure is reflected in t Mayor Morero’s administration, provides every opportunity for the Mayor and his team to fulfil the commitment to rebuild Johannesburg.

It is therefore incumbent on the newly elected Mayor to prioritise the following key measures and initiatives, which are just some of the many required to fix Johannesburg:

- Stabilising the instability in the City

- Resolving the billing crisis to ensure the City has resources for the provision of public services

- Dealing decisively with non-paying customers who have connected to the City’s infrastructure illegally

- Tackling corruption, patronage and profligacy

- Prioritising the rejuvenation of the Inner City by working with the private sector to expedite the construction of affordable housing for residents and students

- Addressing illegal trading in the city decisively

- Holding the Department of Home Affairs accountable for addressing undocumented foreign nationals in the city

- Reintroducing the voluntary cleanup campaign in all communities

Importantly, while the election of a new Mayor is only the first step, rebuilding Johannesburg will require the execution of a sustained program of action, informed by a clear plan, political will, the abandonment of patronage and profligacy, and most importantly, the best interests of residents.

ActionSA is committed to supporting every effort in this regard and will continue to work tirelessly to demonstrate to the 6 million residents of our great City that there is a party dedicated to fighting for them at every turn to ensure they live in a City that delivers for them.

Issued by Nobuhle Mthembu, COJ Caucus Leader, ActionSA, 19 August 2024