THE Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry NPC welcomed the decision of eThekwini Municipality being put under administration.
This comes after the newly appointed MEC of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Rev Thulasizwe Buthelezi announced the intervention that is in operation for 12 months starting from July 1.
Buthelezi introduced Dr Mike Sutcliffe and Dr Cassius Lubisi as the two governance experts appointed by CoGTA under section 154 to lead the intervention.
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The department stated that the strategic support under 154 will entail:
– Building a clean, effective, efficient responsive and accountable local government.
– Implementation of findings of investigation reports.
– Addressing non-compliance with terms and conditions, including poor spending on allocated grants for various projects.
– Strengthening partnerships between communities’ civil society, the business sector and other critical role-players to restore public and investor confidence.
“Our aim is to restore eThekwini to its former status as the jewel in the crown of KZN,” said Buthelezi.
The Durban Chamber of Commerce welcomed this decision saying they support the decision and believe it is in line with Section of 139 of the Constitution of South Africa which makes provision for a municipality to be put under administration.
“The city of eThekwini has been under a lot of strain economically to a point of collapse for too long, from trying to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2021 July unrest and the catastrophic April/May 2022 floods, post these events as the eThekwini business community we have been struggling due to poor service delivery from the eThekwini municipality administration,” said Chief Growth Officer Zanele Khomo.
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To rebuild eThekwini Municipality, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the establishment of the Presidential eThekwini Working Group (PeWG) in February this year.
“As organised business, we believe this platform is key to solving Durban’s most pressing issues. Through the PeWG the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry NPC is focusing on infrastructure rebuild, safety and security, retaining and attracting investment and revitalizing the tourism sector. To ensure the PeWG is successful and achieves its goals we encourage the city leadership to continue to engage with business through this platform,” she added.
Khomo said they have a tough road ahead and they need to work together to prioritise the following:
– The continuation of the Presidential eThekwini Working Group. This Working Group was initiated this year by President Cyril Ramaphosa and is proving to be an effective mechanism for solving critical challenges affecting the business community.
– Infrastructure, water, sanitation and the distribution of electricity.
– Safety and security across the Province of KwaZulu-Natal.
– Rebuild and revitalize the tourism sector.
– Work with the private sector to build business confidence and improve the cost and ease of doing business.
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