Joburg mayor must deliver on big talk

In his first speech as Joburg mayor in August last year, Herman Mashaba promised to rebuild the city, because if “Johannesburg works, South Africa works”.

Yesterday, in his inaugural State of the City speech in the brand-new council chamber, he took a big step in starting to deliver on that promise as he put extensive plans in place to fix the plight of the poor, take a tough stance on crime and corruption, and declared war on drug lords.

He also said his zero-tolerance approach to fraud and corruption led to the city uncovering R10 billion in misused or lost funding.

Talk is cheap, so Mashaba must deliver – and deliver quickly – if he is to back up his speech.

“Looking at all these developments, in line with our 10-point plan, it is without a doubt that day by day, step by step we are beginning to make real and lasting progress in the city of Joburg,” said Mashaba.

“In the coming months we will be unveiling the economic policy of our administration that will take the city to 5% economic growth by 2021. It will be aimed at driving down our crippling unemployment rate.”

Brave words indeed, but if he manages to be successful with a large chunk of these plans, then the people of Joburg will certainly thrive from them.

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