Mandla writes

Mandlakayise Karl of Mashishing writes:

They often say that extraordinary challenges bring about extraordinary solutions. As for some of us, we seek no permission from anyone to speak out on matters which affect our lives. Call us “opportunists” or “critics”, we don’t mind. What is a concern to the people is our lodestar and reason to exist both as individual activists or a collective. We raise matters with no self-interests, unlike some who have become self-made tycoons from the carcasses of the toiling masses.

Before the ink gets dry, let me swiftly deal with some of the ideas that are being discussed to try and salvage the situation in our municipality – mine and yours. They may sound irrational, but I honestly think that they can take us a long way towards getting back to stability.

• Why not slash the huge allowances that are paid to members of the mayoral committee and the executive mayor?

• Appoint competent and experienced directors at half the salary that they are currently receiving (thinking of people like Riaan van Rooyen, Dan Louw and Gawie Basson, amongst others).

• Freeze all senior positions with no impact on service delivery and reinstate the expanded public-works programme to help maintain our streets. Make use of no consultants who are milking us for drafting mere proposals or business plans. Instead make them to do work on risk.

• Go back to Telkom for telephone services and stop this fancy service like Brilliantel. Print municipal accounts at the municipality and terminate the contract with this service provider.

• Sell the executive mayor’s vehicle though the book value might be far less (like Cllr Essack once advised).

• Deal with the unnecessary overtimes.

• Reduce the security services including companies protecting houses of certain councillors.

• Review the tariff structure, it is unaffordable to the majority of ratepayers. Get smart and don’t be luxurious.

• Review all contracts of service providers.

• Do more to facilitate a boom of the second economy and ensure that small business people don’t have to wait to have their businesses running.

• Stop the levy and halt the financial “pain” suffered by businesses and ordinary ratepayers, which might lead to unemployment.

• We have resources in aplomb and need to apply our minds creatively (thinking of BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – arrangement) to exploit economic possibilities and “drive” towards opulence.

In my own narrow thinking, some of these might not see the light of day as long as we have leaders who behave like “drunken stupors of self-negation” like Mr The Honourable MBN and those of his ilk. Without fear of contradiction, these leaders must pack and go. I was not better either. Let me conclude by quoting from my favourite and inspiring poet who wrote that “I shall not cease from mental flight. Nor sleep with my sword in my hand ‘til we have built Jerusalem” – Aluta Continua.