Good Afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen of the Media;

We have just concluded a working session which we convened first with the political and administrative leadership of uMsunduzi Municipality. This was followed by the working session with the business community.

Joining the meeting were the MEC’s for Finance, Nomusa Dumbe-Ncube, Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Ravi Pillay, Social Development Nonhlanhla Khoza.

The purpose of our working session was on practicalising the social compact between government, business and the municipality to fix the challenges; rebuild and reposition uMsunduzi Municipality.

As government we have pledged to work together with stakeholders to make KZN a better and a prosperous place for all.

Today, we convened together to commence the work to build this municipality and make it function; as it is home to the Capital City of the Province of KwaZulu-Natal. As the Provincial Executive, we have taken a decision to work with certain municipalities that are facing certain challenges to support them and make them perform to optimal level.

We believe that the persistent outcries from communities, business and various sectors about the perceived dysfunctional state of the municipality warrants urgent attention and intervention.

While we appreciate the level of stability that exists at the political level in that all executive functions are being performed, there is a strong need to attend to the capacity and performance including productivity at the Senior Administrative level.

We are extremely concerned about the view in the public domain that this municipality is failing. The daily challenges include the failure of key infrastructure, such as electricity and water due to poor/inadequate maintenance, ageing infrastructure and vandalism. Business community raised the following issues for the attention of the municipality:

• Failure to attend to the repair of potholes, street lights and storm water drains;

• Failure to clean the city and surrounding nodal and residential areas including irregular collection of solid waste and challenges associated with the processing and disposal of solid waste;

• Failure to adequately plan for and spend conditional grants over the past Medium-Term Expenditure Framework;

• Failure to contain costs associated with support services such as security as well as external consultants;

• Persistent poor and unreliable billing of revenue from customers for services rendered and rates;

• Poorly functional Customer Care Unit and inadequate Communication with the residents, business and the public at large;

• Safety challenges and poor traffic control management;

• Slow and lacklustre consequence management to address ill-discipline and non-perfomance.

These are the issues which we have committed to respond to practically and with determination. We believe that it is now enough with the challenges that are caused by people who are simply not doing their work. If it means we have to be on a collision course with those who have made it their trade to destabilise this municipality, we are prepared to collide with them.

This city can no longer afford administrative inefficiencies and a culture of impunity where people do not account for what they are employed to do. We are now taking drastic actions to be here and operational in this municipality to bring to an end the woes facing this municipality.

We want to focus on solutions to every challenge and we need clear timelines. We need to turnaround the economy of this capital city and make it a pride of its people again.

We have reached a point where we cannot carry the baggage of other people. We have tasked the stakeholder to introduce with the turnaround plan per each area of challenge. This will be made available before the end of April 2022. We are no longer tolerating municipalities that cushion under-performing staff.

It is time things are done differently in this municipality.Business has also been invited to come on board

We have taken the following resolutions:

In the next two-to-three weeks the administration will present on the state of the municipality.

ON ELECTRICITY:

• MEC for Cogta and EDTEA will assign a team to convene a meeting with Eskom to prepare a final report on the electricity situation and finalise the signing of the MOU between the Municipality and Eskom.

• The MEC Champion of uMgungundlovu, MEC Ravi Pillay, will work with the business sector to convene a workshop to discuss business support within two weeks.

• A panel comprising of business and municipal officials will develop a plan to be presented at the workshop which should include options to be explored by government to source private funding for infrastructure but also ensure we work together to identify challenges related to electricity.

• The Municipality can generate 100 megawatts on its own. The team will work on exploring how industrial parks can benefit from that alternative energy option and ensure centres for essential services are centred around there.

• The experts offered by business are welcome and will work with the team.

ON SAFETY:

• We applaud the Police Commissioner for dealing practically with issues of security in uMgungundlovu District.

• SAPS has been asked to consider establishing a nerve center which can be manned by the District and municipality police, chamber or safety officers to deal with matters of security

• Today we had a new District Commissioner, General Madondo who was introduced by the Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant-General Mkhwanazi to give new impetus in the fight against crime and lawlessness in uMsunduzi.

• The Provincial Commissioner has announced an increased capacity to create a secure environment and focus on hotspots like Plessieslaer and other areas.

• The Commissioner announced that more vehicles have been made available to respond and thwart crime incidents in this area.

• We welcome the announcement that the province will receive additional police compliment in the coming months. At this point the new contingent is undergoing training.

ON WATER:

The Municipality will present on the state of water, what is the actual problem and what are the interventions to ensure that the capacity is upscaled in those areas.

ON CRIME AND GRIME:

• The work of the Deputy Mayor lead clean –up and fight crime and grime is applauded, supported and everyone must build on it.

• A programme to deal with vagrants has been developed within the city led by the Deputy Mayor and this must be intensified.

We have resolved to further engage with the municipality in 3 weeks. We will also be back in there moths to assess the road travelled.

A war room comprising business and government locally will be set up to attend and process issues that affect business timeously.

Pietermaritzburg must be our future, no one should feel the pressure to leave, and we must build it together. In the next six months we will hold a summit in Pietermaritzburg where business will pledge investment in the district and the city. The summit will be focused on growing business in the Municipality and the District. The Provincial Government will present projects that are catalytic and coming to Pietermaritzburg such as the government precinct and others.

This district has been earmarked as the industrial hub and we will pilot leather and textile industrial hub.

We pledge our commitment to work in a different way. Our work must have impact and help us reclaim the position of being the City of Choice.