“I am more optimistic than I have ever been before about the future of the capital city and the country.
This optimism is not based on faith alone. This job has allowed me to appreciate just how much we as South Africans share a common set of values across differences of race, class and place.”
This was the general message and mood of the State of the Capital Address Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink gave at Tshwane House on April 18.
Brink shared successes and failures of the past year with councillors and guests.
One of these was his hope to clear the last of the auditor-general’s concerns in her recent report.
“I am confident that we will achieve an unqualified audit this year. Of course, our financial rescue mission is far from complete. A great deal of work still needs to be done. The stakes cannot be higher,” he said.
Brink promised to restore 90% of power interruptions within 7.5 hours and 90% of water leaks within 48 hours in the next financial year.
“The time when we simply ask for people’s patience and then fix the damage until the next fire happens, is over. I have told the city manager that every substation fire is to be treated like an extreme exception requiring full investigation. If someone’s negligent or willful conduct led to the metro not taking measures that could have saved millions of rand in repairs, such a person must be held accountable for the damage,” said Brink.
He committed to taking a zero-tolerance approach to corrupt metro police officers and fixing the failing street light network.
“We propose to dedicate 30% of the street light budget in the next financial year to roll out solar street lights. Whatever technology is sourced will be tested first, and we will look to potential partnerships to enable us to roll out solar street lights faster than the city can do on its own,” said Brink.
He said he was proud of the metro police’s new alcohol testing bus, the multipurpose vehicle that functions as a mobile alcohol testing and traffic fine centre.
“The alcohol testing is a game changer in our road policing,” said Brink.
He said his administration’s successes in 2023 included what Ratings Afrika called the best improvement in financial sustainability of all metros, establishment of 17 community upliftment precinct initiatives and conclusion of partnership agreements with several organisations.
Brink’s plans for 2024 include the establishment of a project management office to take charge the city’s revenue value chain including the roll-out of prepaid electricity meters, billing, speedy resolution of disputes, credit control and debt collection.
He said the metro will also be ready to implement a new property valuation roll as of the 2025 financial year.
Another project on the cards is a cost of electricity supply study, so the metro can recommend what the city must charge its residents after considering the seasonal Eskom tariff changes.
Brink and his team plans on resurfacing part of the road network in Atteridgeville and Mamelodi, repair Bon Accord Asphalt Plant to accelerate the in-house production of hot-mix asphalt from June and continue with the CBD street light repair partnership with Santam.
He had a few messages for residents of the capital city.
“The first message of Tshwane Ya Tima is to thank consumers who pay for the services they use. The second message is to invite those who are in arrears to make arrangements with the municipality. The third message is that the city will cut off your services if you refuse to pay. We are targeting all debtors, residents, businesses and state entities.”
Brink promised a harsh penalty for illegal connections, including criminal charges.
“The message is clear: We will not tolerate illegal connections and you will be arrested,” he said.
He said to rebuild the city’s tax administration capacity, the metro aims to collect R6-billion of the R23.3-billion debtor’s book in the next few months.
He also admitted to failures of his administration.
“One area in which the city has not achieved success is in reducing water distribution losses. Pipe replacement projects have continued but pipe replacements are not enough. We need an entire new way of detecting and fixing leaks, and in the medium to long term, a new funding model for large infrastructure projects. We already have the intellectual raw material, good ideas and best practices,” he said.
Brink said the metro has also not succeeded in securing its infrastructure against criminal attacks.
“The current system of appointing expensive security contractors to guard our assets does not work. Very often these companies have no security footprint in the communities where assets have to be guarded. There is no cooperation with community policing forums and local security structures,” he said adding that he wants to look for technological solutions for infrastructure safety.
WATCH:
He said the coming election could well lead to significant changes in the political landscape of our country.
“I want to indicate that while this is happening, our team in the city is fully committed to the work we are doing. I am not complacent. I am committed towards demonstrating that a stable coalition can be an example to the country and province,” he said.
Councillor Joel Masilela of the ANC said that the metro multiparty coalition is not working towards solutions for service delivery for all the residents of Tshwane.
“The mayor admitted it himself. We have been suffering eight years of low service. He also admitted to the metro not being able to collect revenue as it should. This coalition government is failing the people of Tshwane,” said Masilela.
He said the Brink’s plan to use technology to secure metro infrastructure would cost residents jobs.
“I and my fellow members of the ANC have no confidence in the mayor’s plans as set out in his address and also in the mayor himself. We believe the only way forward to rescue the city financially is to put it under administration,” he said.
Councillor Michael Shackleton of Rise Mzansi said the coalition government has failed the people.
“Today’s address and plans and promises can only lead to more multiple failures,” said Shackleton.
He said the time has come for the DA and the coalition to stop holding on to a dream.
“The ineptitude of solving problems can only continue. Tshwane is crying for change and the 2026 local election results will show that,” said Shackleton.
ALSO READ: Tshwane mum on Wonderboom transport system delays
Do you have more information about the story?
Please send us an email to [email protected] or phone us on 083 625 4114.
For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East
For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram