ETHEKWINI Municipality’s Operation Good Hope outreach programme came to The Bluff from July 28 to August 1 for a five-day intervention.

Also read: Operation Good Hope returns to The Bluff

The initiative, organised by the South Durban Basin Area Based Management (SDB ABM), tackled issues that have long plagued the area. Anitha Govender, SDB ABM senior manager, said the programme is part of the SDB ABM’s efforts to invest in urban infrastructure and ensure collaboration between the municipality and community.

The programme sought to deal with major issues on The Bluff, including streetlight repairs and verges and tree cutting.

“The team tackled outages caused by stolen underground cables and explored overhead cable solutions. They also managed overgrown trees along major roads like Tara Road, however we are looking for community volunteers to assist in trimming some of the trees, subject to safety and liability protocols,” she said.

Work done during Operation Good Hope:

• Business licensing – Inspected 32 shops and issued eight fines and one notice. Five shops were without licences.
• Brighton Beach police – Inspected regulations of three premises.
• Building inspectorate – inspected 13 shops and verified two building plans.
• DSW education – Encouraged businesses to recycle waste and educated them on waste products.
• Safer cities – Profiled 12 vagrants.
• Fire department – Inspected 33 shops and issued nine notices.
• Environmental health – Inspected 28 shops, issued four fines and four notices. They also issued three certificate of acceptability (COA). The COA is a legal document that confirms a food business complies with regulations regarding hygiene, safety, and handling of food.
• Metro police – Inspected 25 shops for compliance of municipal by-laws.
• Electricity department – One medium voltage fault was repaired and 30 streetlights were repaired.

Govender added that collaboration and participation were an integral part of the operation as the various departments were required to leave whatever work they were doing to assist the community. She added that the Bluff Ratepayers and Residents Association helped engage in identifying areas of priority and in supporting the initiative.

 “The operation has been highly successful, with all relevant units and municipal departments involved in service delivery mobilising comprehensively to resolve the outstanding issues identified,” she said.

Operation Good Hope is a clear demonstration of what can be done if the municipality and community work together.

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