Opinion: New mayor to the rescue?

The City of Ekurhuleni has been grappled with instability over the past few months, marked by several leadership changes in recent years.

This raised doubts about the capability of leaders to rescue the city from its current challenges.

While it’s necessary to challenge leaders who are failing to meet their duties, frequent changes have eroded accountability among those in power.

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One would ask how can one achieve their goals and vision for a better city when leadership terms are constantly cut short and fail to run full term.

Last week we saw a new dawn, or rather a glimmer of hope, when a new mayor was elected without opposition.
Only one name was raised and the council members supported it.

Nkosindiphile Xhakaza is now the newly elected mayor, supported it seems by all those who are interested in serving the community.

In his acceptance speech, he vowed to lead with integrity and ensure that the community is served without any compromise.

At this point I cannot comment much about his leadership, but we just need to wait with bated breath to see how this ship will navigate the political seas of Ekurhuleni. Faith has not been restored as yet as we don’t know the plans of the newly elected mayor.

One thing is certain and that is the previous leadership that promised to serve the people had failed. It left angry and disgruntled community members in its wake.

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They reminded us of the meaningless promises made by the previous short-term mayors, such as those announced after the most recent local government elections.

Tania Campbell pledged to improve service delivery by returning to basics, but it’s unclear if she ever managed to execute her plan or if it was merely a pipe dream.

When political parties promise effective leadership but fail to deliver, it calls into question their sincerity and commitment to the people.

Even when the underdogs were given a chance, they missed the opportunity to showcase their capabilities.

Sivuyile Ngondwana, dubbed a puppet mayor for the EFF, faced numerous challenges during his tenure, casting doubt on his awareness of the city’s service delivery issues.

He presented himself as the people’s mayor but failed the very same people he claimed to serve.

This critique isn’t an attack on any individual or a party but rather a reflection on the quality of leadership the city has experienced in the past few months.

Constantly changing mayors undermines stability and direction.

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What’s needed is a leader with a clear vision, not someone blindly leading the city astray or pushing political ideas.

We cannot afford to switch mayors like changing linen; stability and steadfast direction are essential for progress and the growth of the city, and the newly elected mayor has promised just that.

The new mayor boldly stated that the unopposed support for his elections is evidence that the council wants stability to be able to serve its people.

We are in the honeymoon phase of celebrating this new marriage between Xhakaza and the other parties in council and everyone is toasting to stability and success.

Will this marriage be fruitful for the city to enjoy constant and stable service delivery or will it collapse again when egos make their way into debates when parties table different ideas on how to get to the stability that every political leadership is talking about?

As the people of Ekurhuleni, we remain resolute in our hope, even if somewhat naive, that he will not fail to avoid the fate of his predecessors.