By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele, has assured local communities of the Sedibeng District Municipality that government is going to attend to their concerns.
Gungubele was speaking on Wednesday during a visit to the area ahead of the Presidential Imbizo on Friday.
Most residents used the opportunity to raise their concerns about sewage spills, a lack of electricity, inadequate health facilities and potholes.
Gungubele encouraged the local communities to attend the Presidential Imbizo, as this will be their platform to raise all their concerns with President Cyril Ramaphosa.
“Government will attend to all your concerns. Our government is a caring government,” Gungubele said.
The Minister started his monitoring visit at the local Home Affairs offices where, upon his arrival, he was welcomed by municipal officials who briefed him about the situation in the municipality.
After the briefing, the Minister embarked on a walkabout at Home Affairs, interacting with people who came for the various services offered by the department.
“We are here as government to assess your needs. Government is committed to improving people’s lives,” Gungubele said.
The Presidential Imbizo will be held under the theme, ‘Leave No One Behind’. It will take place at the Sharpeville Cricket Pitch, where leaders from all three spheres of government will interact with residents on service delivery challenges that communities have brought to government’s attention, as well plans for the development of the district.
The Sedibeng Presidential Imbizo will be the fourth interaction between the President and local communities. It follows oversight visits by the President to the North West, Free State and Mpumalanga.
The President committed to engaging with communities throughout South Africa in the February 2022 State of the Nation Address.
Ramaphosa will use the Sedibeng visit to assess progress in service delivery and in the implementation of the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan.
The Sedibeng District Municipality comprises Emfuleni, Midvaal and Lesedi local municipalities, which all have high levels of unemployment, skills shortages and aged water and sanitation infrastructure, which results in sewer blockages, spillages, pump station breakdowns, water leaks and pipe bursts.
Government is responding with various actions, including a R700 million allocation to Rand Water to rehabilitate the Vaal sewer network. Funding is also being sourced to upgrade bulk infrastructure, such as electricity, roads, water and sewerage.
Major progress has been made towards the designation of the Vaal Special Economic Zone (SEZ). The provincial government has received commitments from local investors to the tune of R40 billion and the SEZ holds the potential to create 170 000 jobs over five years.