SEDIBENG.- The Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) Mayoral Committee Members and administration team led by Executive Mayor,  Sipho Radebe met with the Vereeniging Business Cooperation (VBC) last week at the Emerald Casino in Vanderbijlpark.

The meeting is said to have been in an effort to find the solutions to the service delivery challenges identified and raised by the Cooperation. The ELM said that the leadership of the municipality has conceded to be facing a number of challenges and that Radebe encouraged the business leaders to consider exhausting alternative channels and avoid a media confrontation with the municipality.

“It was acknowledged by the two parties that the relationship should have been long established. A mutual call for enhancing the relationship among the organisations through the establishment of the stakeholder forum for both business and civil society was made and agreed to unanimously.”

The meeting has established a Priority Team which will report to the Executive Mayor periodically and this team among others will develop a process plan that will ultimately lead to the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, (MOU). Radebe concluded the meeting with appreciation to the leadership of business people and he further committed the ELM to present a more comprehensive response that will include the MoU conclusion.

Meanwhile it is said that most organisations/businesses made it it clear in the meeting that it cannot stop additional disputes which will be declared by the thousands of unhappy ratepayers, for the services they have not received and that only definitive action with measurable milestones will change the ratepayers mindset and willingness to work with the current administration.