MUNICIPALITIES must be seen to be working for the people and must, in fact, work for the people.
This, says the executive mayor of Ekurhuleni, Clr Mzwandile Masina, was a lesson learnt by the ANC during the recent local government elections.
Speaking at the last council meeting of the year in Germiston on Thursday, Masina added: “It is not the brilliance of the plans formulated by government officials or the great speeches of politicians that drive the historical process of development forward.
“It is the capacity of all of us to translate those plans and inspirational speeches into practical activities that improve the quality of life and services rendered to our people.
“We close this year just three months after we were sworn in as the fourth administration of Ekurhuleni. This followed the unique electoral outcomes of August 3 in which no political party got an outright majority in numerous metros and municipalities across the country.
“In this regard, we had to engage in the difficult yet mature task of alliance building in order to make progress towards the establishment of an administration that will serve the interests of the people. The whole situation of having hung councils must be taken to produce at least two lessons.
“Firstly, we must have learnt that the democratic process depends on the will of the people.
“Secondly, we as the ANC have at least learnt that municipalities must be seen to be working for the people and must, in fact, work for the people,” Masina added.
“Our people are tired of promises. All they want are services and the effective implementation of the progressive programmes we have been talking about over the years. This commitment must inform our understanding that to serve our people we need to have councils and legislatures that perform their work.
“Although we have sharp ideological and political differences, we have to learn and practise the art of mature bargaining in a manner that doesn’t negatively affect the proceedings of these institutions.
“All of this is more important in view of the need for us to combine our intellectual resources to map out a path of sustainable development. South Africa’s historical crisis of racialised inequalities has been magnified in recent years. The concentration of economic assets in the hands of the few to the exclusion of the majority continues to produce uneven development.
“We have to create mechanisms of wealth transfer that can give the black majority meaningful control and productivity,” Masina said.
