By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has defended the cost of his District Development Model (DDM) Presidential Imbizos amid an uproar over the R44 million spent on hosting four Imbizos in eight months.
Ramaphosa arrived in style, wearing sunglasses at the first presidential imbizo of the seventh administration at the Tsakane Sports Stadium in Ekurhuleni on Friday.
He said he had to be at the imbizo despite the eye infection.
The president was accompanied by government ministers and Gauteng provincial leaders.
At an average cost of about R11 million per event, the presidential imbizos have been slammed by opposition parties as expensive talk shops. They have also questioned whether there has been any benefit to the communities where these events are held.
Ramaphosa told the imbizo: “It may look expensive but this is money well spent. We are interacting with the people and some people have complained that they feel excluded.”
The theme of the event is “Let’s Grow South Africa Together” guided by the sub-theme “Leave no one behind”.
Residents of Ekurhuleni told the president of their frustration over the lack of improvements in their areas. They said they had been grappling with water supply constraints, as well as housing and electricity problems.
“Getting my own house would make me so happy, President. That’s all I long for. I do not want to rent anymore,” said one resident.
This sentiment echoed across the stadium, underscoring the desperation for adequate housing.
The meeting also highlighted growing concerns over unsafe ferrying services for school pupils, with a parent taking the platform to decry the increasing number of accidents involving schoolchildren.
Ekurhuleni mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza, who came into office in April, said he was aware of the problems with water and electricity supply.
“There are areas that we have identified in Ekurhuleni for our immediate focus, including the quality and sustainability of services for our communities. We must build a robust financial base, prioritise repairs and maintenance, and ensure good governance and ethical leadership,” Xhakaza said.
“Most importantly for the community of Tsakane, President, the primary service delivery challenges are related to water and energy, and the recent protests highlighted the critical nature of these issues, which are straining our infrastructure.”
Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina said supply issues were being tackled, saying the construction of a water pumping station in Ekurhuleni was a significant step forward.
Energy and Electricity Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has promised to install solar panels and batteries to mitigate the poor of the high cost of electricity.
“Free electricity will come to you. We are going to install solar panels for poor people in the township so that they are not impacted by the high cost of electricity.”
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi committed to addressing unemployment in the province and the roll-out of free wi-fi in all townships.
“What we want to do, President, is to ensure that all our 26 townships, together with MTN and Huawei, have access to reliable, dependable, free wi-fi so that all people can connect,” he said.
“We believe that the children of the poor have the right to do their homework with free wi-fi and access the services they need. The future is no longer just about water and electricity; it’s about data so that those who are unemployed can send their CVs using free wi-fi.”
Another area of concern raised by community members is crime and the President said Police Minister Senzo Mchunu is focusing “on how we can deal with extortion, the construction mafia and gender based violence”.
“Those men who play football with the women of our country must stop and we are going to be focusing on that. Gender based violence is a pandemic and our people are working in a very focused manner on that, “he said.
Infrastructure in Ekurhuleni has dilapidated, especially rail which was one of the cheapest forms of transportation. Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy has vowed to fix the passenger rail infrastructure in the metro.
“We are fixing the rail infrastructure, we are a bit behind here in Ekurhuleni, but we need to have a good passenger rail system as that will reduce the costs of traveling to work,” Creecy said.