I refer to the article in the Benoni City Times of December 7, 2012 – Benoni to get R6-b megamall.
Benoni is, unfortunately, sometimes in the news for the wrong reasons, illegal mining, crime, poor service delivery, etc.
Take the Bunny Park, once a first in South Africa, now a derelict graveyard for bunnies! Boksburg pipped us at the post by building the East Rand Mall, which is a huge magnet for shoppers.
Now we have the chance of building something equally, if not more, iconic, in a place where there is no shopping facility for the thousands who live out that way (Irene is possibly the closest?)
Our lakes were potentially a huge attraction and have not been utilised.
We were known as the Jewel of the East Rand – have all those jewels now disappeared or lost their lustre?
The Mega Mall is exciting news for many people, given the enormous boost to the area by relieving the congestion to get to other malls and also the prospect of creating jobs closer to Daveyton, Springs and Benoni.
This is about an investment, i.e. money coming in!
My question to the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Council is: do they still support this with enthusiasm? Why is this not happening?
What is the hold up, is this documentation or red tape?
Being a resident in the area, seeing how the water, electricity and other municipal services are in need of upgrading and maintenance, I fail to understand why the council is not promoting this more.
Our economic salvation lies in creating jobs; this allows for wealth distribution, taxes and much needed rates for the council.
Is this not a core reason for councillors being voted for, to do their jobs to improve the greater Benoni area, especially if it makes economic sense?
This ticks all the boxes of the country’s macro-economic and social objectives.
Why on earth is this not being embraced with enthusiasm?
If shopping centres are built, this could mean extra houses are built on open land, it means more (millions of Rand potentially) per month extra that the council could receive to improve the service delivery and quality of life for all Benoni people from rates and taxes. It means investment in Benoni from developers and other secondary activities that will follow. It means job creation.
This must be a major focus area, because it brings an economic freedom, which is what we desperately need.
The other major issue is the impact on crime reduction.
The more jobs created, the more dependents can be helped, the less reason for crime born out of desperation to survive, before it becomes a way of life.
Councillors, I challenge you to take advantage of any prospects for economic growth, as your actions can make a significant difference to the people of Benoni.
South Africa is in trouble because of service delivery, management of assets and planning with a vision to the future, why not do your part to make a difference where you can?
This is something I would expect councillors to commit to and fight for!
Editor’s note: The Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality was approached for comment, which will be published in due course.
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