DA’s Tania Campbell is Ekurhuleni’s new mayor

The DA in Gauteng has congratulated Tania Campbell on her election as the mayor of Ekurhuleni and Raymond Dhlamini as the speaker of council.

During the council meeting, which was held on Monday, it transpired that the DA may unexpectedly gain the majority vote for mayor, thus providing an opportunity to wrestle power away from the ANC government.

“This was a spontaneous show of faith by other opposition parties in the DA’s ability to govern and a collective expression of the voters’ will to remove the ANC from government,” said DA Gauteng Provincial leader Solly Msimanga, MPL.

“The DA’s provincial leadership endorsed the Ekurhuleni caucus’ choices for speaker and mayor and they were, therefore, nominated to contest and won both the mayoral and speaker positions.

“We are extremely proud of our team in Ekurhuleni and have great trust in their ability to turn the metro around and into a world-class city that delivers services to all residents.

“Ekurhuleni has many challenges, ranging from deteriorating electricity and water infrastructure to inherent corruption and various incomplete projects, like the Harambee Rapid Bus Transit System. Our team will have their work cut out for them to turn this city around.

“There is a lot of work to be done by the DA in Ekurhuleni to ensure a stable government that delivers, and we will be engaging with possible coalition partners during the week to ensure we bring stability to the governance of the City.

“We are under no illusion, it will be an uphill battle to turn Ekurhuleni around and that we will not be able to do it overnight. However, if given the chance, the DA intends to work day and night to make a success of the government in Ekurhuleni.”

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During her acceptance speech, Campbell stated she was humbled by the faith and trust placed in her as mayor.

“It is my privilege to serve the people of Ekurhuleni as the mayor of our City,” she said.

“The challenges in our City are great and it will take a team effort to overcome. Therefore, I would like to invite all parties in this chamber today to take hands with us so we can build an exceptional City that our residents will be proud to live and work in and for those outside wanting to move and settle their businesses here.

“This is the change our residents have been waiting for. Now is not the time for more promises, now is the time for us to get things done.

“For far too long, people have been living in conditions that are substandard in Ekurhuleni.

“Our residents have been living in a metro where service delivery is nearly non-existent, where millions of rands have been spent on housing projects, business centres and substations and yet there is nothing to show for it.

“This ends today. Today, we start the process of giving our people their dignity back. We start the process of ensuring every tender that is issued is done so transparently and fairly, and that value for money is ensured at all times.

“We know that over the last week, the entire country has been plagued by load-shedding, but in Ekurhuleni nearly every day, residents are subjected to countless power outages, costing businesses money and our residents their hard-earned money that ends up in the bin because it has gone rotten.

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“No more. We will immediately start the process of fixing the electricity problems that seem to endlessly plague our metro.

“Not having enough supplies in the store to replace simple electricity infrastructure must end so we can fix power outages quicker.

“No longer will we be living in filth – as pointed out by the public protector due to waste not being collected regularly. This is a direct violation of our human rights and it ends now.

“Access to dignified housing is another right enshrined in our Constitution. We cannot have mega housing projects that only exist on paper but not in foundations.

“It is clear that our people cannot be subjected to this slow pace or non-existence pace of service delivery any longer.

“Service delivery to all residents in our metro can only be delivered if we are out there interacting with our people daily.

“My job and your job is to get things done, and that cannot be done from sitting in an office. Our people want to see action and they want to see action from us.

“Soon, I will announce a mayoral committee that will help steer and ensure fast and effective service delivery to the residents of Ekurhuleni.

“I urge you to remember that it is our residents who have elected us to represent them in this municipal council. We need to speak and advocate on their behalf.

“Let’s take hands and work together. Let’s get out there and get things done!”