Honorourable Mayor, Mthembu on Ukhozi FM

Mandla Sithole shared KwaDukuza Municipality's post to the group: Kwadukuza - ILEMBE Public Matters & Reporting.

KwaDukuza Municipality

[SUMMARY]: The Mayor's radio interview on Ukhozi FM this morning. This interview was conducted in isiZulu.

On electricity - • The electricity network is back to its normal state. We have ensured that all infrastructure that was beyond repairs has been replaced, this includes transformers in the main; • Mayor to respond to further questions based on meetings with the community and labour.

On Human Rights month: • The 2018 National Human Rights Day coincides with the centenary of former President Nelson Rholihlahla Mandela and Ms Albertina Sisulu. To celebrate their Centenary is important and fitting tribute to mark their selfless and fervent effort towards bloodless transition and their promotion of human rights; • The Human Rights Day in South Africa is associated with the 21st of March 1960, on that day peaceful marchers were mercilessly massacred by the apartheid regime; • Those who are on our social media, would have seen that on a daily basis we post rights within the Bill of Rights our strategic objectives for the Human Rights Months are: - To use the Human Rights month as a vehicle to foster social cohesion, socio-economic development, end to racism, xenophobia and homophobia. - To highlight the progress made in advancing human rights and restoring human dignity. - To create awareness through educational programmes, dialogues and public engagements on the importance of Human Rights.

On infrastructure handovers: • My office conferred critical infrastructure projects that were part of the several wards priorities in the IDP for the 2017/2018 financial year. That is the Shayamoya Community Hall (in Ward 13), Bird Park Bridge Replacement (in Ward 19) and Nonoti Mouth Crèche (in Ward 03). In total these projects cost R12 783 227,77; • The completion of these projects is a true symbol that the peoples prayers to Council are responded to. I urge you to take care of these facilities and guard against those who seek to harm them as a community; • I am enthusiastic at the completion of the Bird Park Bridge, many lives had been lost in this area during flooding. When I was bestowed the position of Mayor it was amongst many projects that I made it my duty to see through, to provide relief to the community of KwaDukuza, in particular Stanger Heights.

On Masakhane Campaign: • We seek to mobilise communities to participate and contribute in municipal revenue generation initiatives to ensure sustainable development; • We are using this campaign as a vehicle to instil a culture of paying for basic services by the community, so that we are able to continue providing service delivery; • This revenue enhancement strategy places peoples participation plainly at the centre of development;

On cutting costs: • In the beginning of this current financial year, EXCO resolved to engage the independent services of KZN COGTA to conduct a high level assessment on the state of finances of our municipality and the report was generated within three (3) months; • The report, generally, pointed at among other things that KwaDukuza Municipality has over the years been having overtime and refuse removal costs rise steeply. This was mainly due to the increase in population and wards requiring services; • Noting the severity of the situation from a cost analysis point of view. EXCO made recommendations to Council to immediately ensure that it refines the organisational overtime measures in line with employer–employee collective agreements as well as to develop a refined refuse collection strategy; • Given the escalating and unsustainable costs of overtime and failure to comply with the provisions of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act in relation to overtime, it has become necessary that measures be put in place and such measures to look at the generic causal factors for overtime as well as clear procedures to be followed in mitigating overtime.

On the Year of Mandela: • The community of KwaDukuza has youth as its majority population. This therefore calls for us to ensure that adequate programmes are put in place to ensure mentorship, nurturing and development of youth as leaders of tomorrow; • Our objective is clear, it is to give youth a conducive environment that enables them to be better individuals that will help better the current status quo which is heavily characterised by unemployment, poverty and inequality; • During the Easter Weekend, we set to have the Mayoral Games that will have various sporting codes including indigenous games. We are also having an inaugural you summit, next week, from the 23rd until the 25th March 2018. We will use these events as a vehicle to refresh our mandate with regards to youth focused programmes.