Durban- The ANC, SACP and Cosatu in KwaZulu-Natal are taking their recent summit discussions over concerns on the running of the eThekwini Municipality to residents, starting with uMlazi.
At the weekend the alliance partners issued a declaration, including the convening of a water and energy summit and how to deal with serious challenges in the running of eThekwini Municipality.
The plan is to meet with President Cyril Ramaphosa, KwaZulu-Natal Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube and the national Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs in an effort to address serious service delivery deficiencies in the province and the metro.
ANC provincial spokesperson Mafika Mndebele said the programme would start in uMlazi on Saturday, with the aim to get feedback from people “on the ground”.
“We get regular reports from deployees, but we want to hear people and listen to their concerns over service delivery issues.
“We will put these concerns on the letter we will write to the president in which we will request a meeting, but we also want to intervene on some issues, there and then.”
Mndebele said the reality was that services in affluent areas, where there are still challenges, were better than the services being provided in the metro’s townships.
SACP provincial secretary Themba Mthembu said it was impossible to establish the severity of service delivery challenges without hearing from those who were affected by issues in the municipality.
“We are taking the declarations very seriously and we are going to uMlazi, Ntuzuma, KwaMashu and others. UMlazi was affected by poor service delivery before the floods, and we want to know why the repair of infrastructure has been so delayed when a budget has been set aside for this.”
The summit declarations included the following:
- A crime-free KwaZulu-Natal where all communities feel safe.
- Adequate access to water, electricity and other basic services.
- Decent houses for all, as well as welfare for vulnerable groups and an improved standard of living.
- Food security for all, improved education and a skilled population.
- Responsive leadership and local government.
- Healthy communities through sports and recreation and thriving rural and township economies..
- Increased support for small businesses in the informal sector.
- Access to economic opportunities and job creation.
- Adequate transport infrastructure – rural and urban.