VANDERBIJLPARK. — The Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) welcomed the delivery of five brand-new tipper trucks and five cherry pickers at its Vanderbijlpark offices this week.

The delivery, it is said, is aimed at bolstering the municipality’s operations.

The new vehicles will be used particularly for clearing illegal dumping sites and speeding up the municipality-wide repair and maintenance of all street lights.

Executive Mayor Hassan Mako and Municipal Manager April Ntuli received the delivery.

The municipality said this latest delivery is part of an ongoing process of equipping the municipality with the necessary resources and institutional support to fulfil its responsibilities to residents.

“It is a deliberate investment in ensuring that service delivery units are not expected to perform without the necessary tools, but are properly equipped to give their all in serving communities,” Mako said.

For Mako, this milestone connects directly to the mandate entrusted to him by the public. His vision is for the municipality to act as an institution that solves problems instead of explaining them away, responds rather than delays, and delivers instead of making excuses.

The vehicles are instruments of service rather than mere machines.

Expressing excitement at seeing this vision take tangible shape, Mako emphasised that the vehicles are instruments of service rather than mere machines.

“They are instruments of service. Every tipper truck and every cherry picker must translate into a municipality that responds faster, fixes what is broken, removes what threatens the dignity of our communities and ensures that our residents are not unnecessarily inconvenienced. Our vision is clear: Government must be felt where people live, work and walk, and our teams must have the tools to get the job done,” said Mako.