Challenges Andrew faces as a councillor in Ward 91

The year 2023 for all ward councillors has been characterised by an increasing decline in the basics.

According to Ward 91 councillor Andrew Stewart, this problem is not purely limited to electricity and water outages.

“The general decline has been impacting all entities, from Pikitup to Joburg Roads, as well as core departments such as transport and development planning.”

He highlights that given the state of the tenuous coalition that runs the city administration and the fact that they have not had a permanent city manager and most likely will not have one for some time, the general outlook for Johannesburg is unlikely to change dramatically in this 2021–2026 term of office.

“Having said that, I do normally try to provide a balanced end-of-year recap, simply because in the past there have usually been at least a few victories that provide a silver lining.”

Stewart points out that 2023 was unfortunately not a good year for Ward 91.

“Towards the beginning of the year, I was pleasantly surprised that the first phase of the Watt Street project in Wynberg/Alex was eventually commencing, but so far, the project has been beset with stoppages as a result of contractors not paying their workers.”

He added that another project that was eventually funded this year was the first phase of the Mushroom Park upgrade, where the collapsed waterline, bridge, and sewerage inlet were to be fixed.

“Implementation was slow to begin with, but the project is on track, and hopefully we will see phase two being implemented in 2024. Except for the above two projects, one of which suffered consistent setbacks, Ward 91 has survived the ordeal of 2023. I hope residents can enjoy their family time over Christmas and try to get away from the stress and drama that living without a consistent water and electricity supply can bring down on us.”