Dear Actioneers,
We had an exciting week with our first-ever Speaker of Council elected in City of Johannesburg on Wednesday, 21 August 2024.
Congratulations to Joburg Caucus Leader Nobuhle Mthembu – we will be walking closely with you to ensure that you and your department are effective in helping turn service delivery in the City of Johannesburg around.
Consultations concerning possible collaboration with ANC in City of Tshwane have started, with an extra-ordinary meeting with President Herman Mashaba, National Chairperson Michael Beaumont and Provincial Executive Committee members held last Wednesday. Further consultations have been scheduled with Tshwane Regional Executive Committee as well as Tshwane Caucus this week. We look forward to the outcome.
The first capacity-building session was held with RandWest Executive Committee last Saturday, and will be rolled out across the Province in the coming weeks, so as to help structures onboard with ActionSA’s new membership system.
All members will be requested to apply for new membership as of September 2024, in an effort to strengthen branch structures across Gauteng Province and prepare for ActionSA’s inaugural Peoples Convention in March 2025.
We are excited about new opportunities across the Province, and for your faithful commitment to ActionSA’s cause of fixing Gauteng.
Kind regards,
Funzi Ngobeni MPL
Gauteng Provincial Chairperson
MIDVAAL
Midvaal held a general meeting on the 17 August 2024, which was aimed at giving full update on all vital party developments, i.e new policy on paid membership from 1 September.
After a full review of our performance in the recent elections, the Region further outlined and adopted a list of strategies that will be embarked upon leading to 2026 LGE.
Our strategy plan prioritises the re-registration of current members as paying members, as well as visibility drives, as we make ActionSA known in Midvaal and recruit new members for the establishment of branches.
RAND WEST
ActionSA Rand West hosted Gauteng MPL Emma More on Thursday, 23 August for an oversight visit of Montrose, Dan Tlloome and Western Mega Projects in Randfontein.
ActionSA met with communities members directly impacted by these abandoned and incomplete mega housing projects, to understand the challenges they face.
Gauteng MPL Emma More will be requesting an official oversight visit with Human Settlements Portolio Committee, so as to get to the bottom of the matter, and hold officials and property developers accountable for negligance of their duties and non-performance.
MOGALE CITY
Mogale City Ithembelisha Women’s Forum will be visiting Odirileng Maponya Clinic on Wednesday, 28 August, to engage with residents on issues they face at the clinic. Security guards and cleaners will also be engaged. This is aimed at holding the department of health accountable on unresolved issues and poor service delivery.
The clinic operates from Monday to Friday until 16:00. No service are rendered on weekends. ActionSA will be advocating for extending working hours, so as to reduce waiting time at the clinic. Further submissions will be made after the scheduled oversight visit.
PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE
Gauteng SCOPA Chairperson John Moodey MPL is presently working on responses received from departments and entities on House Resolutions taken in the previous administration regarding the findings by the Auditor General and the former SCOPA Committee. Many a response was not accepted and follow up questions have been submitted.
He is also scrutinising annual reports from the different departments and entities for the 2023/24 financial year, and compiling questions to appear before SCOPA Committee in October.
JOHANNESBURG
With less than 5 years of existence, ActionSA Joburg Caucus has reached a milestone achievement.
ActionSA Joburg Councillor, Cllr Nobuhle Mthembu has been elected as the first youngest female Speaker of the City of Johannesburg Council. This role will enable the party to play a critical oversight role but most importantly it will bring the much-desired stability and foster the culture of accountability in the city of Johannesburg.
ActionSA Joburg Caucus has re-investigated the progress report on the rehabilitation of Bree Street, this came after a portion of street caved in last year following the explosion.
We have realized that the Contractor might not reach the contractual agreement which stipulates that phase one of the project must be completed in December of 2024. We have requested the Provincial Government to declare Bree Explosion a disaster Zone to unlock the necessary resources.
The R200 electricity surcharge which was baselessly imposed to the residents will now be reviewed owing to the caucus relentlessly rejection to it.
The Kya Sands matter has been a thorn in those who resides next to the illegal dumping site, as a result the Joburg Caucus has conducted an oversight visit.
Few recommendations were submitted by the Research team and one of the recommendations is to submit a motion to Council, recommending that the City Develop a rehabilitation plan to rehabilitate Kya Sands Landfill Site.
TSHWANE
After three years of advocating for the relocation of Mamelodi Flood Victims, ActionSA is pleased to announce that the victims will finally be relocated to safe and serviced stands that they can call home.
The City of Tshwane Department of Housing and Human Settlements has confirmed that the relocation process for the Mamelodi Flood Victims will commence in November 2024.
Those affected by the 2019 floods will soon be moved to their new allocated stands in Pienaarspoort. The city is actively clearing and developing the land for the new stands, with a dedicated service provider appointed for this purpose in Pienaarspoort under Regions 5 and 6.
Additionally, the evacuation of the Nellmapius Hall previously occupied by the Mamelodi flood victims for over three years is a positive development that will provide the community with access to essential facilities which include the library and sports facilities.
ActionSA is encouraged by these significant developments, which prioritize the restoration of dignity and freedom for the Mamelodi Flood Victims.
We believe that these efforts will empower the community to utilize their facilities once again and we are committed to offering our support and assistance throughout this vital relocation process.
EKURHULENI
Reliable waste management is one of the key responsibilities of municipality administrators and one of the effective proxies of good governance. Effective reliable waste management mitigates adverse health, environmental impacts and improves the livability of communities.
The collapse of waste management services in the City of Ekurhuleni (CoE) has put the health
of residents at risk, especially the marginalized social groups and has direct impact on public health costs.
ActionSA Ekurhuleni through its Caucus exposed the inefficiency of the office of MMC for Waste, despite a budget of R63 million budgeted towards waste collection services. The region further reiterates the need to capacitate the municipality through the procurement of trucks and insourcing of permanent workforce to meet the demands of the city.
ActionSA’s caucus and activists also took to the streets of Tembisa and participated in a clean up of a dumping site. We hope our call to Action will force MMC Manamela to focus on resolving this crisis.
