Farmer's Weekly (South Africa)
PE Market: a new leaf
Regular readers of this column might recall that in the past I’ve been critical of the state of affairs at Port Elizabeth Fresh Produce Market.
At one stage, the market was unravelling due to fraud and mismanagement by certain senior market staff, a number of whom were convicted. Some market agents were also found guilty of underhand dealings.
new attitude, new facilities
But that’s all in the past. I recently paid a visit to PE Market and was delighted to see real improvements taking place.
This was immediately evident by the simple, yet crucial, feeling of optimism that pervaded the place. Mechanical scrubbers were being used to wash the floors, and the salespeople were positive, in contrast to the negative attitude usually evident in the past.
The entrance to the administration block inside the market has been spruced up.
In the car park outside, those hideous articulated buses, a hangover from the soccer World Cup in 2010, have been removed.
the failure of political appointees
PE Market struggled with mismanagement caused by political interference from City Hall. The politicians, as ignorant of markets as always, insisted on making their own appointees to run the market.
As well intentioned as some of these market managers might have been, they were never going to make it. Now, a fresh breeze is blowing though PE Market as the incumbent market manager, Gcobani Ngozi, takes on the challenges of running a market.
He still has to contend with bureaucracy and politics, but it seems as if he has found ways to manoeuvre within those restrictions and produce results.
persisting against the odds
It must be extremely challenging at times, but Ngozi deserves recognition for what he is doing.
I’m hopeful that if he persists, the politicians and bureaucrats at City Hall might get the message and realise that their market is returning to its rightful place as a leading regional facility.
• Michael Cordes is an agricultural journalist, consultant, trainer and former farmer. Email him at farmersweekly@caxton.co.za. Subject line: Market floor.