Mayor walks to interact with citizens in town

Many Newcastle shoppers and shop owners were surprised when they were greeted by the town’s mayor, Dr Ntuthuko Mahlaba, when he went on a walkabout on Allen Street last Wednesday, April 10.

In the lead up to the State Of Town Address (SOTA19) last week, Cllr Mahlaba took to the streets on his Scamtho Mayoral Walk and Talk on Allen Street to interact with people and find out what their concerns were in their communities.

There were mixed reactions from people, but many complained about the municipality’s poor service delivery. Cllr Mahlaba maintained the purpose of the walk was to be in close contact with the people of Newcastle.

“I want people to know that, before anything else, I am human and I am able to relate to their concerns. I wanted to see what’s happening; what our people and businesses are going through. I have heard many concerns, from blocked drainage systems that cause flooding, issues around metered parking and the crime in town. With regards to blocked drains, people litter in town and we need to make some kind of awareness around that. There are bins in place but people still choose to litter.”

He also addressed the public’s concern about his pending court case;

“In any court of law innocence must be presumed until proven to the contrary. In my case, the courts will decide. I know where this whole thing comes from, how it started and the people behind it. I will properly deal with it after the court case. I do however respect peoples’ views. People are allowed to criticise and I can’t get angry with that. I also have my own views. The reception from the people today was good. People want stability at the municipality and for us to grow our economy, and that is why I am here,” he concluded.

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