Where to send your meter readings
Residents can submit their meter readings to the following contractors in Benoni:
• Every Day Accountants and Practitioners (PTY) LTD: 011 615 3454 or 076 050 5094 or email: Admin@everydayap.co.za
• Lebhos Construction Services (PTY) LTD: 076 825 8336 or email: Fynneric1@gmail.com/fynnnicky@gmail.com
Pretoria roadworks done
The construction on Pretoria Road due to roadworks is complete, this according to Ekurhuleni metro spokesperson Themba Gadebe. “The work at Pretoria Road (phase four of the 2018/2019 financial year) is complete,” said Gadebe. As previously reported by the City Times, construction work in Pretoria Road began in February 2017. Numerous delays which also affected businesses, primarily owing to a misunderstanding between the contractor and the sub-contractor which resulted in work halted, were cited as reasons for the delays. Business owners in the area also told the City Times that they expected the roadworks to take between five to six months to complete as per a letter they received. This was, however, not the case as the roadworks were prolonged for over two years. “The newly constructed lanes were open for traffic on August 2 and the road markings and signs were completed on August 16,” concluded Gadebe.
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Call centre glitches
The Ekurhuleni metro has recently noted that the customer service call centre has been experiencing technical glitches that result in callers being cut off before they are assisted. The cut-off happened mainly when callers select an option they are prompted to select. The metro has, as an interim measure, eliminated the prompting option so calls are routed directly to any available call centre agent. The IT department is currently attending to the glitches.
Customers are still able to log their queries through the call centre on 0860 543 000, or alternatively use My Ekurhuleni App to access services at a touch of a button. The App is also compatible with feature phones (non-smartphones), and customers may use those devices to report service delivery issues via a USSD (*134*30263) option, at no cost. The metro apologises for the inconvenience caused.
New EMPD recruits
The metro added 263 new recruits to the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department on August 23. Congratulated and addressed by the executive mayor, Mzwandile Masina, after a pass-out parade at Germiston Stadium, the new officers, who started the basic 18-month training for enrolment into the EMPD in January last year, completed the training in June this year. The pass-out parade was witnessed by members of the public as well as family of the recruits.
Masina urged the recruits to maintain the same discipline that saw them through the training programme and to take the opportunity of being part of the metro to further their studies. He told the new officers that their main functions include to serve, protect and defend institutions of democracy and the communities of Ekurhuleni. “These men and women do not have any criminal records and they should keep it that way,” he said. The new officers will be deployed in different EMPD precincts across the metro to beef up the police visibility, crime prevention, and enforcing the law and by-laws of the metro.
Peace dialogues with youth
The Ekurhuleni metro is part of 100 cities that host 100 Inter-Generational Global peace dialogues. Young people from across the metro gathered at the OR Tambo precinct recently to discuss critical issues hindering their success. The Inter-Generational Global Peace Dialogue, hosted by Ekurhuleni metro in partnership with African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (Accord), sought to solicit tangible solutions from the youth for the scourge of social ills, unemployment and lack of development opportunities, which affect them. Among the participants were Mary Serunye from Wattville, chairperson and founder of Thol’ Imfundo Foundation, which aims to champion the needs of disadvantaged youth. The foundation assists matric learners to apply for bursaries and to register at tertiary institutions. Thol’ Imfundo also helps youth who need assistance with drafting a CV, preparing for job interviews and internship opportunities. “In most cases youth challenges are compounded by the lack of information. We believe that assistance from the government does not only have to be in monetary value, but may also be through logistical support which is important, particularly by organisations like ours,” Serunye said.
She added that all we need from the metro is to provide access to information that is beneficial to the youth, by creating more information-sharing platforms for young people.
