Stability of Pikitup a Major Concern

Pikitup, the City of Johannesburg's troubled municipal owned entity, continues to dominate the news as the majority of depots are shut down by an illegal go-slow or all out strike and by intimidation of those officials who wish to continue working.

According to reports, violence erupted at the Randburg depot this week when there was a clash between security guards and workers. All trucks that left the Randburg depot to try and deal with the backlog caused by the strike were hastily recalled back to base when it was ascertained that the safety of the drivers could not be guaranteed in the face of intimidatory threats.

The workers are unhappy with the fact that the transport that was previously provided to ferry them to and from work was deemed by a court not to be part of their standard terms and conditions of employment and was withdrawn. According to inside sources, the workers were told that the transport is not safe to ferry passengers.

Pikitup has been in crisis for many years and the Executive Mayor has been accused of standing by with arms folded while the entity was being run into the ground. A new MD was appointed in 2012, an appointment which was deemed to be controversial because the individual had previously worked for the council and had left under a cloud because of poor performance.

The new MD has wasted no time in ending the contracts of a number of employees, employing new executives and proposing a number of sweeping changes. In the face of this, employees have accused the MD of tapping private conversations, manipulating tenders and unleashing a reign of terror. The MD has indicated that the allegations stem from the unhappiness of employees as a result of organisational transformation, while the DA has warned that employee's rights should not be trampled upon while the company hides behind transformation.

Pikitup has become unstable and it is in the interest of all the citizens of Johannesburg that the Mayor intervenes to bring back some normality and sense to a volatile situation. Shall we hold our collective breaths or should we expect more of the nonchalance and lack of leadership we have experienced in the past?

Statement issued by Cllr Alan Fuchs, DA Spokesperson on Pikitup, July 12 2013

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