New Giyani mayor assures concerned muni workers nothing will change
Greater Giyani Mayor, Sasavona Mathebula, has assured the municipality's workers there will be no change to the way they perform their duties when compared to the previous administration after she was inaugurated as the new mayor of the municipality.
This statement comes after fears of change unsettled several municipal employees.
Speaking during her official introduction to the workers, Mathebula encouraged unity, saying she was not there to change anything but to lead the new administration.
“I must emphasise my stepping in as mayor does not change anything in terms of how you execute your duties. I’m here to ensure everything runs smoothly, not to change anything,” she said.
“As workers in different areas of expertise, we all have the common goal of fulfilling the task that is before us – to serve the community of Giyani with dedicated effort and to the best of our abilities,” she said.
She said when people work together as a unit, they don’t point fingers or shift the blame when things go wrong. Instead, they work together to resolve the problems.
She said that is the kind of unity she wants from everyone in the Greater Giyani Municipality.
Mathebula said it is important that workers advise one another, irrespective of the position they hold, saying this would ensure mistakes are corrected before issues get out of hand.
“We shouldn’t let each other veer off of the path toward our mission of serving the community,” she said.
The Chairperson of the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) in the Greater Giyani area, Edgar Mageza, thanked Mathebula for putting their concerns to rest by clarifying the situation.
“In many cases, when there is change, people have fears and doubts. However, your presence today has relieved us from those fears,” he said.
He reminded Mathebula to review the requests made by the workers in the past.
“The change in administration should not affect the processing of our grievances which have already been submitted to the municipality. It is your duty as mayor to make follow-ups and make amendments where necessary,” he advised her.
