Johannesburg executive mayor Dada Morero admitted the city, SA’s financial and economic hub, was beset by systemic service delivery backlogs and said R3bn would be used to address infrastructure backlog in marginalised communities.
Morero delivered the state of the city address moments after DA Joburg caucus leader Belinda Kayser-Echeozonjoku submitted motions of no confidence in both him and council speaker Nobuhle Mthembu, saying the city was falling apart under their watch.
In March, President Cyril Ramaphosa proposed the establishment of a presidential working group as part of efforts aimed at addressing service delivery challenges in a metro that is responsible for 16% of SA’s GDP and employs 12% of the national workforce.
Joburg is suffering under the weight of poor service delivery, water and electricity challenges, crumbling buildings, corruption, uncontrolled illegal immigration and vandalism of traffic lights, dysfunctional street lights and rapidly deteriorating roads and bridges.
Morero said Joburg residents did not demand much. “All they want is electricity, water, transport, safety and housing,” he said, adding that just more than R3bn had been allocated over the medium-term revenue expenditure framework to invest in eight “deprive and marginalised areas” as far as addressing infrastructure backlog was concerned. The underserved areas included Diepsloot, Southern Farms, Ivory Park/Kaalfontein, Orange Farm, Soweto, Riverlea, Zandspruit and Eldorado Park.
The executive mayor said drastic times called for drastic measures, adding extreme action was needed to push back against decay in the city.
State of disaster
From July, a state of disaster for crime and lawlessness; on potholes, illegal connections, land invasion, illegal mining operations, illegal dumping and undocumented migrants, would be declared.
Morero would also “rotate” members of the mayoral committee and senior managers and sell the metro’s debtors’ book, and enhance revenue collection by collecting a daily minimum of R200m in order for the municipality to “thrive”.
“The city’s financial position remains fragile and it calls for a major reset in our financial management and revenue generation activities. Our revenue collection approach will be overhauled to improve the liquidity of the city leading to its financial sustainability,” Morero said.
“We must behave in an unusual manner so that we can see and yield different results.”
Kayser-Echeozonjoku said under Morero’s leadership, basic services in the city had crumbled and communities were being neglected. The machinery of local government was grinding to a halt in the city, she said.
“Johannesburg deserves better. The executive mayor has failed the people. Instead of leading with integrity, his administration has been marked by mismanagement, patronage networks and a disturbing lack of transparency,” Kayser-Echeozonjoku said when introducing the motion for a vote of no confidence in Morero.
“Equally troubling is the speaker’s failure to uphold her constitutional role as an impartial guardian of council processes. Instead of ensuring fair and robust oversight, she has consistently shielded the mayor, undermining council’s ability to hold the executive accountable.
“Between the two of them, council has turned into a political playground, while residents suffer the consequences of poor governance,” she said.
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