Vandalism prevents increased service delivery - Mayor De Lille

In the City, there's a saying that you only come to appreciate with time: Local government is not for the faint-hearted. That truth is a saying you can comprehend at the theoretical level. But you only truly know it once you have experienced local government.

I've served in various capacities in the spheres of government in South Africa, whether as a member of the opposition in the National Assembly or as a provincial minister before accepting the honour of the mayoralty.

It's true that all of them have their particular challenges and they differ greatly. The pressures on the parliamentary legislator are different from the responsibilities of provincial oversight.

The demands on the individual working in these systems change per the requirements of each. We know that all of them, with equal value in our constitutional framework, work together to deliver the complete package of South African democracy.

I understand the complete package. I can visualise the parts of the machine. I know the design and the need for every cog, every screw to do its work to make the machine operate.

And still my mind is brought back to that saying about the faint of heart.

Perhaps this is merely the feeling of those caught up in the midst of battle: their particular war is always the hardest fought.

No. It is more than that. Local government has as its primary function service delivery which means that, at the end of the day, we must ensure that the lights come on, the water flows and the waste is safely removed.

The excellent manner in which we deliver these services has made us, in most measurements, the best run local government in the country.

But there is no one else to delegate these responsibilities to; no other public custodian of the common good who can intervene on our behalf.

And the scale of our responsibilities is only magnified by the two constants in the delivery equation: delivery happens without pause; and the recipient population increases with time.

These responsibilities involve massive networks of people, time and money.

But they also require massive networks of infrastructure: the pipes, cables and drains that make this city liveable. The city's government and the people we serve are in some ways fighting a battle, a battle against increasing targets, limited resources and a changing environment, for example.

But there is another direct battle we are fighting, a front that is particularly painful: the battle against vandalism.

I am not sure that every citizen appreciates the scale of this particular challenge. Some people might associate vandalism with undesired graffiti, or perhaps a defaced sign.

Vandalism includes those things. But it also includes, but is not limited to: the destruction of robots; the destruction or theft of electricity cables and installations, water pipes and installations; and the blockage of sewers. If delivery is based on networks, then you cannot have points at which the network is interrupted, which is the net effect of vandalism.

This includes vandalism across the city. And just as much as we install services, we also need communities throughout the city to take responsibility for those services and realise that they become part of the neighbourhoods which they serve.

These facilities are installed by the City, but they belong to all of the people of Cape Town who need to take ownership of them.

The facts are sobering. In the financial year to date, we have spent:

• just over R115 million on vandalism related to sewers;
• just under R7 million on vandalism related to water and sanitation;
•  just under R6 million on vandalism relating to electricity. This figure includes just over a million Rands worth of vandalism each for Mitchells Plain and Gugulethu;
•  just yesterday, a team found that from Lindela Road to Baden Powell Drive , a control box had been vandalized with approximately 800m of cable and 20 poles' wiring stolen.

To frame this in a practical example, by September 2012, all lights with a life span of five years were fitted within Khayelitsha. However, within almost six months, only 35% of these lights are working because of illegal electricity connections and significant vandalism.

The direct cost aspect is made even more complicated by the over-regulated environment in which we work, in which audited compliance means that it is not easy to deviate from budgets set in the beginning of the financial year. Repairs on vandalised city property constitute such deviations.

But in addition to this city-wide problem, there are the multiplier effects of disruptions to networks. For example, broken streetlights might interrupt the safety grid of an area; a comprised water pipe effects different communities downstream; and a blocked stormwater drain can cause serious damage to the surrounding built environment.

All of these network disruptions have consequences for the people of this city, be they problems in getting to work through water-clogged streets or a feeling of vulnerability and a lack of safety in the dark, for example.

And so we, as the government and people of Cape Town, are fighting against those trying to prevent us from creating and appreciating a liveable city. Given the scale of our challenges at local government, this particular battle is an especially bitter one for the simple reality that it prevents us from doing our job and making delivery progress for the whole city.

Sometimes, it seems that for every step forward we take, we take two steps back. Every step back means that we divert funds from new infrastructure, thereby preventing increased service delivery.

And so yes, I know deep within that local government is not for the faint of heart. The pressures. The responsibilities. The immediacy. But what makes it especially taxing for the individual working in this particular part of our democracy are the enemies within who make our job that much harder.

I am appealing to communities to help us. To report vandalism, please call the following numbers:

1. Copper theft: 0800 222 771

2. ‘Vandalism' is malicious damage to property - a common law crime : call the nearest SAPS station or Metro Police via 021 596 1999

3. If it is graffiti-related, which is a form of vandalism, also call 021 596 1999

4. The general call centre number that the public can use to report such faults: 0860 103 089

* Select option 2 water-related faults Technical Operations Centre (24 hours)

Can also e-mail [email protected] or SMS 31373 (160 characters)

Select option 3 electricity-related faults (24 hours)

Can also e-mail [email protected] or SMS 31220 (160 characters)

Issued by the City of Cape Town, February 8 2013

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