Bright beginnings

We can’t let this edition pass without saying a heartfelt thank you to Riana Meiring for all her dedicated and hard work as Acting Municipal Manager over an extended period. It has been so refreshing, with Makana being brought out of administration, to witness the improved working relations between Makana councillors and Makana Municipal staff.

A great deal remains to be done, and Grahamstown Residents’ Association with others, will continue to engage constructively to encourage further progress. It is going to take courage and perseverance to complete the next steps as the municipality is still struggling with high levels of debt.

In recent weeks, both The Executive Mayor, Nomhle Gaga and the Chairperson of the Infrastructural Development Portfolio Committee, Mabhuti Matyumza have expressed determination to “turn things around”, “to cut out wasteful expenditure and cut costs”. For example, the monthly overtime costs recorded for August just for the four Infrastructure depart- ments (Sewer/Water/ Roads/ Electricity) is R545 176. At the same time Makana cannot afford vital pieces of equipment or even parts to repair vehicles, meaning that staff cannot efficiently do their jobs.

Until there is more accountability and control over the resources that Makana owns, it will continue to struggle to pay bills and to find the money to do the basics right. It has gone horribly wrong in the recent past here in Makana, culminating in the period of administration, because control was lost to such an extent that fictitious “ghost workers” were being paid.

Please stay in touch with this column, engage with GRA and for businesses, the Grahamstown Business Forum. There is a great deal at stake right now in Grahamstown if the progress made in the last 9-12 months is to be maintained. We can make Makana more open to scrutiny, more responsive to citizen needs, and also achieve more reliable services and a safer and cleaner City, as long as we keep our eye on the ball and don’t just assume that it is someone