“You will see change. I promise you. This programme is going to change the city.”
These words were spoken by the executive mayor of the Sol Plaatje Municipality, Kagisho Sonyoni, during a press briefing on Thursday (23/03).
He was speaking after the two-day strategic planning workshop to formulate long-term plans to meet the demands of the growing city and service delivery matters.
This comes after the premier of the Northern Cape, Dr Zamani Saul, announced in his State of the Province Address (Sopa) on 2 March that the National Treasury had allocated R1,9 billion to the Sol Plaatje Municipality to improve water and sanitation services.
“This will enable the municipality to realise their priorities in terms of urgent refurbishment of old water supply infrastructure that is in a poor state of repairs,” Saul said.
“We must work smarter, harder and with greater determination,” Sonyoni said on the long-term plans for the city that were discussed by councillors, the municipal manager, officials, representatives of Coghsta, and various stakeholders who attended the workshop.
Sonyoni said service delivery in the city must improve and investors be attracted.
“The Sol Plaatje Municipality must also be a tourist attraction, and an agricultural hub,” he said.
The improvement of road infrastructure, stormwater channels, and water and sanitation infrastructure are priorities.
Sonyoni admitted the municipality, with approximately 280 000 residents, has cash-flow problems and that low debt collecting is the trend.
An urgent campaign to get money from debtors will take place.
The municipality wants to settle their Eskom account, and Sonyoni said the provincial government departments were expected to settle their debt with the municipality in full this year.
Water and electricity losses account for a major portion of the municipality’s challenges, and will also be focal points.
On the continuing cable theft in the city, which negatively affects individuals and businesses, Sonyoni said the processing of solutions were taking place, such as CCTV cameras at hotspots. The municipality also wants to move away from copper cables, and rather introduce aluminium cables.
“Scrapyards must not be able to accept copper anymore,” he said.
Sonyoni admitted illegal dumping is a serious problem, and also hampering environmental issues.
Repairs are still continuing at the Homevale Water Treatment Plant, and Sonyoni promises that the water next to the N12 at Kamfersdam, and the R31, would “soon be something of the past”.
Plans to make paper in municipal offices redundant, and focus on a paperless and digital administrative system, was also mentioned. Money saved this way can be spent on bettering service delivery.
He said service delivery must be brought to the people, and the grant from the National Treasury must be spent in the next five years.
“Everything must be spent; nothing must be sent back, and we must succeed for future generations.”
According to Sonyoni the city is already cleaner than it was a while ago, and said efforts to improve service delivery are taking place all over the city. Also, an improvement with stormwater channels can already be seen, he said.
For the execution of the long-term plan, the 33 wards of the city will be clustered and the plan will be implemented therein.
