Mayor delivers Budget and State of the Town Address with poise and good humour

The mayoral couple, Afzul and Farhana Rehman were greeted with loud cheers as they entered Farmers Hall on Tuesday evening, for the mayor to deliver the 2014/15 Budget and State of the Town address.

The evening was viewed as an official council meeting, giving Cllr Rehman the opportunity to table the third municipal budget to the current administration of Council. Many noted, that at least two of the opposition parties were not even present.

During the introduction, Cllr Rehman made mention of the late Nelson Mandela, and the legacy he left behind.

“His passing has brought untold pain to our people and those beyond our borders,” said Cllr Rehman. “We find solace in the knowledge that Madiba will forever be in our hearts and that we have a duty to take his legacy forward. In just under two months, we will again exercise our most fundamental expression of freedom, our right to vote for a new government,” he said. “As Madiba wrote on his prison calendar in 1979, the purpose of freedom was to create it for others.”

Cllr Rehman then mentioned the challenges faced by the ANC-led council which came into power in 2009, and the severe conditions faced by many residents in Newcastle and surrounding areas at the time.

“We believed, as the ANC government, that the R68-m provided by the municipality for capital development was far too little to provide a better life for all,” he said. “We increased that amount to R172-m immediately, then to R229-m in 2010, to R310-m in 2011, to R318-m in 2012 and to R418-m in this current financial year.”

“The 2014/15 budget is no different. It will continue to tell the story of a government that listens to its people, trying very hard to make an impact on their lives by providing service delivery that you can touch and feel,” he continued.

The 2014/15 draft operating budget has grown by more than R100-m, bringing the municipality to a total operating revenue of over R1.5-bn. The draft capital budget also showed continued growth with a total of R441-m that will be spent on new infrastructure projects.

“This ANC led government will continue to move towards our dream of making our townships of Madadeni, oSizweni, Blaauwbosch, Charlestown ad surrounding areas, the same as the suburbs of Aviary Hill, Hutten Heights, Lennoxton and Paradise,” said Cllr Rehman. “In this regard, our priorities remain the same.”

Roads:

– R75 300 000 to be spent on new tarred roads in township areas.

– R5.5-m for the second phase of the Kwamathukuza main road.

– R12.4-m for urban access roads in Madadeni.

– R29-m for urban access roads in oSizweni.

– R28-m for phase two of the widening of Allen Street, from the Ncandu River bridge to intersection of Hardwick and Allen streets, Phase 3 to be completed in 2015/16 financial year.

– R2-m for phase one of the rehabilitation of Jenkyn Street.

– R1.5-m for the completion of the upgrade to Murchison Street.

– R600 000 for new speed bumps.

– R3.5-m for sidewalks and pavements to be made safer and more accessible for joggers, cyclists and people in wheelchairs.

– R20_m for resealing projects.

Water and sanitation:

– R9-m for toilets in rural areas

– R1.5-m for toilets in Charlestown, Ingogo and Normandien, for the first time

– R4.5-m for flushing sewerage system in oSizweni Sections E and F

– R11.1-m fora flushing sewer system in Stafford Hill

– R5-m total for bulk sewer and sewer pump station at H39 settlement

– R14.6-m for Siyahlala-la for sewer reticulation and water pipes from Hilldrop Reservoir

– R12.7-m for refurbishment of waste water treatment plants in Madadeni, Ngagane and Kwamathukuza.

– R5-m to fight the war against ancient water pipes and equipment in critical areas of all suburbs.

– R11-m to repair leaking water pipes in Madadeni and oSizweni

– R2-m for rehabilitation of dongas in townships

Electricity:

“We are currently in negotiations within the Eskom licence area of our townships to take control of the street lights, as communities raise their concerns of the malfunctioning of street lights to their ward councillors yet we do not have jurisdiction over this service,” said Cllr Rehman.

– R2.7-m for the conversion of certain street lights to LED, for more cost efficient lighting.

– R5-m for refurbishment to current networks

– R2.5-m for further electricity supply to Siyahlala-la

– R1-m as counter funding to funds that will be obtained from the United Nations to provide energy efficient solar water heaters to high paying electricity cosumers.

“The project with the United Nations is proof that I do not go overseas and loaf,” laughed Cllr Rehman, receiving healthy chuckles in return.

Rural development:

– R6.9-m for Phase 2 of the JBC community hall in Blaauwbosch

– R5.6-m for Phase 2 for the rebuilding of the community hall in Charlestown

Housing:

– Khatide Housing project in The rural areas of Wards 6and 12 will start next week with 2 000 houses being built at a cost of R157-m.

– R290-m for 1200 houses in Siyahlala-la, 897 houses in Madadeni H39 and 1500 houses in Charlestown, which have all been approved and are in the final stages of planning.

Municipal Office Block:

“Honourable speaker, we boldly continue to build our seven-storey office block, which will see the final phase in the 2014/15 financial year, at a cost of R194-m,” said Cllr Rehman. “This will enable us to house all our staff and make the municipality building a one stop shop, where a person will be able to pay their rates, apply for a new house, approve building plans and access all other municipal functions. The long term benefits of building this block will be felt for generations to come.”

Operating budget:

“The 2014/15 budget will also provide to create offices for ward councillors in their wards, making them more accessible to the communities they serve,” said Cllr Rehman.

“Now,” he said, smilingly. “Let’s talk about how we are going to pay for all this.”

He continued to say that unfortunately someone had to foot the bill for the long list of service delivery projects mentioned.

“We are however, very wary of the fact that residents are under strain to meet their financial obligations these days,” he said. “We have considered all options as an executive committee to make certain that the burden of the ratepayer is minimal.”

Included in the operating budget, will be the repayment if the R290-m external loan that will be accessed to fund the final phase of the municipal block, as well as the committed and new capital budget. After all of this expense, the municipality plans to close its cash flow statement with a surplus of just more than R55-m.

“The current valuation role is now open for inspections and objections, for which the closing date has been set down as April 18. We urge all residents to peruse their valuations and object where necessary,” said Cllr Rehman. “In light of this increase in market value, we have the pleasure of announcing that there will be no yearly increase in rates in the 2014/15 budget.”

Other services, namely water and sanitation will be increased by 7 per cent, while electricity will be increased by an average of 7.39 per cent, even though Eskom increases cost by 8.1 per cent.

The indigent threshold has also been increased to R3 500, which means that any household earning R 3 500 or less will be completely exempt from rates and will receive 50kw of electricity and 12 000 liters of water for free. The basic charges for water and electricity for indigent consumers in Newcastle west, has also been scrapped.

“I once again emphasise that Newcastle has contributed to the change that our President has spoken about. I believe, that in moving South Africa forward, Newcastle has led the way,” he said. “In this regard, I have themed the 2014/15 budget Newcastle’s contribution to the good story!,” concluded Cllr Rehman.

No mention was made regarding the smart meters or the parking meters, however, follow up articles will again bring to light the current situation surrounding the pressing issues within the community, those spoken of in the Budget and State of the town address, as well as those omitted.