New eThekwini Municipality mayor gets to work

Cyril Xaba was officially sworn in as eThekwini Municipality’s new mayor on Wednesday, July 10.

Mr Xaba promised in his speech that the honour that has been bestowed upon him, is one that he will not take lightly.

He added that it’s a responsibility that he accepted, knowing well the expectation that comes with the job.

“I thank my predecessor, former Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda who had been in this position since 2019 and I want to wish him well as he assumes his new responsibilities. My predecessors laid a solid foundation. We will continue working closely with community leaders, business and all our stakeholders to create solutions that reflect our collective aspirations,” said Mayor Xaba.

He said the city has a vibrant and dynamic community, rich in diversity and full of potential.

Mr Xaba committed to nurture this diversity and harness collective strengths to build a more inclusive future, where no one must feel left out.

“Working collectively, we will review areas that have not performed well and implement new approaches. In the process we will enhance transparency and improve accountability, to ensure effective and efficient service delivery. We will also ensure that those entrusted with the responsibilities are responsive and more accountable,” he said.

He added that the City’s priorities are clear, they will focus on:

• Improving water and sanitation infrastructure as well as ensuring uninterrupted water supply;

• A safe and clean city;

• Inner-city rejuvenation;

• Strengthening good governance and fighting corruption;

• Attracting investment and promoting an inclusive economy that creates jobs.

“We want to appeal to the employees of the municipality to recommit themselves to serve the public with integrity, honour, and humility in line with the Batho Pele Principle. We must state unequivocally that we will not tolerate people who do not want to work and those who pursue their self-interests at the expense of the people of eThekwini,” said Mr Xaba.

“We will monitor performance of senior management to ensure that it’s aligned to the objectives and key performance indicators that underpin our IDP (Integrated Development Plan).”

In his effort to promote clean and accountable administration, the mayor said they commit to continue to work with all institutions that are charged with a responsibility of enforcing good governance such as the Auditor-General, Treasury and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA).

Mayor Xaba welcomed the support that they currently receiving from the provincial and national government through Section 154. He assured that they will cooperate with all support teams to ensure that the City improves in all identified areas of intervention.

“Next week, we will be engaging with all support teams with an intention of strengthening relations and ensuring that our work is aligned to adequately respond to the service delivery needs,” said Mr Xaba.

“We are acutely aware that building a functional and sustainable city requires a collective effort. In this regard, we want to commit to bolstering our working relations with the business sector to build a vibrant and resilient economy. We must continue to facilitate the ease of doing business in eThekwini by creating efficient systems that improve turnaround time and remove the red tape – making it easier for investors to do business in the city.”

Mr Xaba said he will focus on strengthening collaborative efforts on issues of climate change by building an environmentally sustainable and resilient city. He said frequency of flood disasters in the city calls on them to review strategies to adapt and mitigate the impact of climate change. It is critical to have a functioning and effective early warning system that can help prevent the loss of life.

He added that stakeholders in the built environment must collaborate with the City to ensure that they build better and smarter. The City is going to insist that people desist from building in flood prone areas as the municipality will avail suitable land for human settlement.

Also on the list of his concerns, Mr Xaba said they plan on creating a safe and clean environment and working with the SAPS to curb crime. Increased Metro Police presence and smart policing using CCTV cameras will be used to prevent crime. He added that a meeting with service delivery units will streamline plans to clean the city, rehabilitate roads, fix streetlights, maintain sport facilities and parks, build houses, and deal with water and sewer leakages aiming to accelerate service delivery.

“We will be engaging Amakhosi, political parties, business community, organised labour, civil society, the religious sector, and academia to solicit their input on how we can take the city forward,” he said.

“I assure you of my commitment to collaborate with all political parties and stakeholders to make this city work for its residents.”