DA Tshwane Mayoral Candidate unveils vision for Tshwane

7 May 2020

The City of Tshwane and South Africa are facing new challenges that have never been experienced before, and we are now operating within a changed landscape.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is ready to serve the people of Tshwane during this difficult time.

Today, the DA’s Tshwane Mayoral Candidate, Randall Williams, launched his vision for the City of Tshwane to become a responsive and transparent city that delivers to residents.

This requires a special response, and in line with this demand we have developed a plan that will prioritise the following focus areas:

A Covid-19 Plan to contain the spread through increased levels of testing, public education and treatment where necessary;

Service Delivery driven by the real needs of the residents as identified by the residents;

Transparency and Regular Communication on all key aspects of city services;

Speed, agility and resilience will be the driving principles as the city responds to key issues post Covid-19;

Zero tolerance for city funds stolen or misspent, either through corruption or mismanagement. Strict consequence management and criminal action.

Over the next 15 months the DA will work tirelessly on bringing the vision to life based on these 5 key principles.

Through a stringent Covid-19 plan in place, we will demonstrate leadership in containing the spread of Covid-19, prioritise health and social development and source relevant protective equipment and training.

We will capacitate clinics to expand testing and treatment for residents and increase funding to support vulnerable groups and non-governmental organisations providing social relief.

We will restructure our budgeting systems to introduce better grants to support vulnerable communities as we continue to build a city that is resilient during this crisis.

I have prepared a plan that will build on past successes and ensure full delivery of services. The following items are but a few issues covered in this plan:

The DA will set new targets that 90% of all streetlights in Tshwane are lit at all times and ensure a faster turnaround time in relation to complaints from residents pertaining to water and electricity outages, pothole repairs, finance queries and malfunctioning traffic lights.

The provision of water and electricity will be prioritised and we will on a weekly basis track updates on the status of service delivery projects in the city through a mayoral dashboard.

We intend to expand our safety offering to residents by introducing a dedicated inner city patrol unit, increase the number of operations to counter cable theft and illegal dumping, have focused crime prevention strategies to combat the scourge of drugs and ensure speedy prosecutions at municipal courts.

We will regularly assess the Covid-19 impact on the city’s finances and seek a rates relief to residents during the lockdown period and expand the indigent register to facilitate a basket of basic services to residents who are at risk and vulnerable communities.

We will blacklist service providers who steal from the city and ensure strict consequence management in cases where fruitless and wasteful expenditure or corruption is identified.

Through this vision, we will work hard to maintain the trust of residents. Trust is a core priority and today’s vision aims to ensure that Tshwane is in the forefront of delivering quality services to its residents.

The DA has a sound judgment in place from a full bench of the High Court and we will go to great lengths to enforce it. It is important that as a council we encourage all parties to remember why they were elected and to put the residents first.

To do this we will reach out to all political parties and try to initiate terms of reference where we can cooperate while governing.

Among these will be a leadership forum where party leaders and whips will be consulted to ensure that we roll out the best possible plans to improve the lives of our residents.

It is time to put politics aside and think about the critical issues faced by our communities, and ensure that they get the best benefits the city has to offer.

Issued by Randall Williams,DA Tshwane Mayoral Candidate, 7 May 2020