Newly-appointed Durban mayor Zandile Gumede’s 43 promises for the next five years:
1. We commit to work with our people, opposition parties, government, business and civil society to realise the vision of our great city.
2. Our task, as the newly elected council, is to consolidate and accelerate what has been achieved. We must reach for new heights and raise the bar through interventions that will change our city for the betterment of our people.
3. The council shall continue to improve people’s lives through accelerating service delivery, economic growth, job creation, social and rural development.
4. We will continue to provide great leadership in South Africa and the continent, and to explore innovative development solutions by learning from our peers.
5. Despite receiving numerous “good service delivery accolades”, the city will not live in past achievements.
6. The city will continue to get the basics right.
7.The streets must be clean.
8. Roads must be without potholes.
9. Waste must be collected weekly.
10. Our street lamps must work.
11. Households and businesses must have a regular power supply.
12. Issues of health and safety must be addressed.
13. Water and sanitation are also in our list of priorities.
14. The fast-tracking of infrastructure development will be addressed to ensure better quality of life for communities. eThekwini’s wards grew from 103 to 110 after the local government elections, most of them rural.
15. With urbanisation causing the city to “burst at the seams”, the administration needs to have a clear plan to eradicate the slums by relooking at the city’s housing models.
16. We want to ensure that those people living in flood plains, informal settlements and backyards receive priority from a development point of view.
17. All new houses will comply with the National Home-Builders Registration Council standards.
18. No invasion of land should be tolerated.
19. We will urgently look at our housing allocation policy to make sure that the needs of the poorest of the poor are taken care of.
20. We will maintain the “clean audit” outcome obtained by the city in the last financial year.
21. Anyone who transgresses good business principles with the city, be they a member of the executive, an ordinary councillor, any member of staff or private companies trading with the city, must rest assured that we will come down on them with the full force of the law.
22. We will continue to drive a corruption-free city.
23. Regarding the multibillion rand GO!Durban public transport system being developed, this project will have a direct and positive impact on the city’s economic growth. But we still need to unlock more opportunities, especially around job creation through supply chain policies.
24. We are committing to working with all stakeholders in the transport industry, including taxis.
25. The city has built a “globally competitive investment destination” one-stop shop for investors and developers. This facility will facilitate all catalytic projects.
26. The city is in a process of establishing a team of experts, to be known as the Dream Team, that will assist our catalytic projects office to quickly achieve its objectives.
27. The multibillion-rand northern and western water acqueducts under construction will ensure a steady supply of potable water in the areas of concern.
28. Transforming the township economy is going to receive an added focus over the next five years. We will work with stakeholders to fast-track our vision of empowering small businesses, that are at the heart of our townships.
29. The city’s Energy Office will be expanded to realise the opportunities presented by the green economy.
30. A speed train between King Shaka International Airport, the Bridge City mall and the inner city is “on the agenda”.
31. We are committed to take forward the establishment of Agri-Parks within eThekwini. We will work with amakhosi (tribal leaders) to make this agenda as inclusive as possible.
32. The development of young people, women and disabled people is a major focus of our office. We will look at resources that must be prioritised for youth development linked to job creation and the establishment of sustainable youth business enterprises.
33. The city has the largest concentration of higher education institutions in the province. We will continue to partner with local universities and technical colleges in training programmes to ensure that our youth get the skills required for economic growth.
34. We will work with state security agencies to root out non-accredited, fly-by-night institutions.
35. We are going to roll out wi-fi infrastructure throughout the city, consistent with the consolidation programme.
36. The mayor’s office will work closely with the department of military veterans in order to address some of the “unique” challenges faced by the veterans.
37. As a caring city, we are committed to addressing homelessness and poverty to ensure everyone can live with dignity.
38. We believe there is a direct link between economic conditions and social ills; as a result, we are focused on improving the economic status of all our people.
39. I will in due course convene a mayoral lekgotla to provide political direction on our political plan for the next five years.
40. There will be increased councillors’ accountability to our communities by, among other means, convening regular community meetings and feedback.
By mid-November, all councillors are expected to have established ward committees. The council Speaker will oversee this responsibility to provide linkages between elected councillors and ward stakeholders.
41. Executive committee councillors will sign performance agreements with the mayor to ensure legislated councillors’ code of conduct.
42. I will keep lines of communication with the electorate open and sustained throughout the five years. Unity of purpose will remain a critical pillar of our work with all sectors.
43. I promise to fill all critical vacancies within the next six months.
*Do you have any concrete and constructive suggestions on how the mayor can succeed in achieving any of these promises? If you do, we would like to hear from you. Please send your considered thoughts to [email protected].
The Mercury