Trollip to head phase two of war on waste programme

THE second phase of the war on waste programme has been launched, with Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Athol Trollip committing to head up the project himself.

The first phase of the litter-picking programme suffered some snags, with underspending and alleged political interference resulting in the budget being cut from R15-million to R6million.

Yesterday, phase two of the project was launched and will see 335 temporary jobs created through the Extended Public Works Programme (EPWP).

Under the political leadership of former deputy mayor Mongameli Bobani, the project was meant to accelerate the cleaning up of the city’s streets with a special focus on illegal dumping sites.

But Bobani was accused of political interference in the hiring of litter pickers, which saw the EPWP distance itself from the recruitment process.

The matter is still being investigated by the municipal public accounts committee, while a draft report by PricewaterhouseCoopers details irregularities in the processes of employing litter pickers.

Trollip, who is also acting portfolio head for public health, said his office would monitor the operation to ensure absolute efficiency and compliance.

“All ward councillors must play a constructive part in ensuring that this project is effective. I will be engaging with the leadership of all ward councillors to see that this happens,” he said.

“The thing I was least impressed about was the fact that we didn’t even spend the money. We need to spend every single cent we have as government.”

Trollip said the city also did not get value for the money that was spent.

“Under this administration, we want value for money and we want to make sure that we uphold all the rules of the law and do the job,” Trollip said.

He said some of the money would go towards a wheely bin survey to decide whether the city needed to buy more wheely bins or service the existing ones.

“There will be a specific focus on litter-picking operations in township communities, the eradication of illegal dumpsites, law enforcement and public awareness campaigns,” he said.