Ward 91 Clr Desmond McKenzie represents Norkem Park, Birchleigh North, Glen Erasmia, Glen Eagles and Kaalfontein informal settlement residents.
His concerns for his ward include continuous electricity outages, street lights not working, burst water pipes, open spaces and parks not serviced on a regular basis, potholes and a lack of resurfacing of roads.
“My work involves submitting petitions to council, questioning the relevant mayoral committee members, addressing infrastructure issues with the responsible departments, working collaboratively to improve services and to continue working in partnership with local community members and the responsible departments in council.
“Challenges are part of everyday live. These include officials not responding and communicating about interruptions on time and residents unhappy about poor services.
“A challenge provides a chance to push ourselves and to see what we are capable off. It keeps us on our toes.”
He mitigates concerns by attending to issues early and often.
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“Delays lead to tense, stressed-out situations. Consistent communication is vital when dealing with ongoing complaints.”
In response to how he plans to involve residents in decision-making processes he said these processes include public participation activities, online public participation and face-to-face public participation.
“Social media, WhatsApp groups, Facebook and YouTube enable people to interact in a variety of different ways and can facilitate the open engagement of a larger group of participants.
“To continue to be visible in the community, reliable and timeous resolution of service delivery issues is of key importance,” he said.
“I also aim to be trustworthy and serve the needs of my community and to continue to drive the upliftment of the community and promote social cohesion.”
His message for the residents is: “I am passionate about representing all residents to ensure their voices are heard in Council. I am looking forward to continue working with the residents, council and the relevant department within council to ensure service delivery is ongoing.”
Contact McKenzie on 082 454 4407or at Mckenzie@ekurhuleni.gov.za
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