We don’t employ guards, says Msimanga

1. Dear Mr Mayor, I have a serious concern about security workers who will be losing their jobs. Don’t you think this will cause more damage to the city in the long run?

Why don’t you get rid of the middlemen and at least give the security guards contracts under the city? Think about the families and relatives as there are parents and breadwinners included here. Benson, Centurion.

Mayor Msimanga: The security guards are employed by private companies with whom they have contracts of employment.

The said companies’ services were enlisted for a specific time frame while the City of Tshwane was preparing internal capacity to render security service.

The terms of the agreement with the private security companies has expired and the city is now utilising internal staff. Appointing the security officers will not be feasible since the city is utilising its own employees at the moment.

This, however, does not prevent the individual security officers from applying for vacancies that are advertised from time to time.

It must also be pointed out that the city has a staffing policy that requires the city to advertise all vacant positions that need to be filled.

2. Why did the mayor report in the newspaper that the sewer problems in Ga-Rankuwa have been fixed, when in Ga-Rankuwa View, Zone 16, a house next to the mortuary has been flooded with sewage since December and is still the same, as at August 30.

In zones 1 and 7, sewer waste has been flowing from the yards into the main road.

I have communicated with the municipal office in Soshanguve, which at first promised to attend to the problem, in particular, at a house in zone 16; where a sick old lady of 77 cannot open her kitchen door because of the spilling right in front of her kitchen. Steve Moatshe, Ga-Rankuwa.

Mayor Msimanga: Sewer Jets are currently in the ground on a daily basis. The stand numbers provided in the e-mail will be forwarded to the respective officials mandated to lead the unblocking programme.

The current solution is a quick win strategy adopted to deal with challenges now.

A long-term plan is available and it will run in phases, starting this financial year, 2017-18, with a budget of R5 million to do pipe replacement.

It must be noted that the infrastructure underneath has reached the end of its life span, hence the city has embarked on a programme to replace the infrastructure.

In some cases, the unblocking is done and still the problems persist because of challenges relating to stuff that should not be in the system, such as refuse bags.

3. Mr Mayor, please set up a unit/programme or office that will serve as a mediator between job-seekers and employers.

In the same way financial institutions are regulated by NCR and FSB, we ordinary citizens need to know where we can go to report unfair practices during and after interviews.

How long are we going to waste the money we don’t have attending interviews for positions already filled?

I am a welder and I am talking from experience. Ten of us did a welding test at Transnet Pretoria and only three of us made it.

Everything was going smoothly until, out of nowhere, my employment was reversed and someone was hired. No communication was made as to what that meant.

I’m advocating that we need a body that will listen to our voices and save us from corruption in the parastatals. Unity Tladi, Tshwane CBD.

Mayor Msimanga: The City of Tshwane (CoT) is a product of a statute with a specific mandate or responsibilities in terms of the constitution.

Just like the city, there are other organs of the state which have been established by legislation to address specifically what you are suggesting the city to monitor.

The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) and the department of labour are the appropriate bodies to whom all labour malpractices can be reported and resolved.

The city’s legal mandate does not go as far as monitoring what the other companies are doing.

It does not have those powers, even if it wished to do so, but the CCMA and the department of labour are the ones entrusted with such powers.

You are advised to approach the CCMA to report the incident.