Ward 37 candidate Amanda outlines service delivery priorities

1. What are the three biggest challenges facing your ward, and how will you address them?

Reliable service delivery, deteriorating infrastructure and community safety are my three biggest priorities. Alberton residents pay for services and deserve reliable electricity, water, refuse removal, functioning roads and streetlights.

I will be visible, follow problems through with the relevant departments and push for proper maintenance and long-term solutions instead of endless temporary repairs.

2. How will you improve basic service delivery such as water, electricity, refuse removal and road maintenance?

Residents are tired of receiving a reference number and then hearing nothing further. I will keep track of major service-delivery problems, follow up continuously and escalate unresolved matters. My approach is simple: Report it. Record it. Follow it up. Resolve it.

3. What specific plans do you have to improve community safety and reduce crime in the ward?

Safety requires cooperation. I will work with SAPS, EMPD, CPF structures, neighbourhood watches, security companies and residents.

We must also address broken streetlights, overgrown areas, illegal dumping and infrastructure theft because these contribute to unsafe communities. A safer Alberton requires all of us to work together.

4. How will you ensure residents are kept informed and involved in decisions affecting the community?

A councillor should never disappear between elections. I will remain accessible through community meetings, WhatsApp, social media, ward walkabouts and direct communication.

Residents deserve honest feedback, whether the news is good or bad, and they must have a voice in decisions affecting their community.

5. What will you do to support local businesses, informal traders and job creation?

Alberton businesses create jobs and support families. I will work to address municipal obstacles that make it difficult for businesses to operate, including unreliable services, poor roads, safety concerns and unnecessary delays.

I also want young people to have better access to skills development, learnerships, apprenticeships and employment opportunities.

6. How will you improve conditions in informal settlements and underserved areas?

Every resident deserves dignity and access to basic services. I will work with the relevant departments to address water, sanitation, refuse removal, safety, access and other legitimate needs.

But I will also be honest about what can realistically and legally be delivered. I would
rather tell residents the truth than make an election promise I cannot keep.

7. What is your plan to address potholes, sewage spills, streetlights and illegal dumping?

I will regularly inspect Ward 37 with residents, prioritise potholes, sewage spills, broken streetlights and illegal dumping, and report each issue to the responsible department. I’ll record reference numbers, follow up and escalate recurring problems until repairs are completed, check the work on site and update residents on progress.

For persistent faults and dumping hotspots, I’ll press the city for lasting solutions, including better maintenance, waste collection and enforcement.

8. How will you ensure municipal funds allocated to the ward are spent transparently and effectively?
Public money belongs to the public. I will monitor budgets and projects affecting Ward 37, question unnecessary expenditure and keep residents informed about progress and delays. Alberton residents have every right to know where their money is going and what they are receiving in return.

9. What programmes or initiatives would you introduce for young people, women and vulnerable residents?

Alberton already has excellent community and welfare organisations doing important work. I don’t want to reinvent what already works.

I want to help connect and support these organisations while promoting skills development, youth opportunities, entrepreneurship, safety initiatives and better support for elderly and vulnerable residents.

10. If elected, how will residents be able to hold you accountable and measure your progress over the next five years?

Residents must be able to ask me: “Amanda, what did you promise, what did you do and what is still outstanding?”

I will remain accessible, report back regularly and measure success by results, not photographs or promises. I cannot promise that every problem will disappear overnight. What I can promise is that I will be present, persistent and prepared to do the work.

Being a councillor is not about having a title. It is about serving your community.

Honest. Service-minded. Capable. | Eerlik. Diensbaar. Bekwaam.