THE mission to clean up and revamp Clairwood through the Operation Good Hope programme has made great strides in working towards restoring the previously neglected community to its former glory.
The week of 24-28 May was dedicated to assessing and restoring the damaged roads in the area. From business compliance checks, Metro Police presence to illegal dumping clean-ups, there has been much improvement in the provision of services in the Clairwood business and residential areas to address service delivery challenges in the area.
The programme, spearheaded by the South Durban Basin Area Based Management (SDB ABM), is close to the heart of eThekwini Mayor Councillor Mxolisi Kaunda who has encouraged municipal staff to eliminate ineffective service delivery complaints.
“Operation Good Hope is a multipronged approach comprising of all the service delivery units and departments in the city together with external stakeholders such as provincial government departments, private organisations as well as community and non-governmental organisations,” said Mayor Kaunda.
He said the initiative seeks to address service delivery challenges in communities including clearing blocked stormwater drains, management of bad buildings, health, issues, environmental challenges, social ills such as drug abuse, enforcing bylaws, clearing litter, fixing leaking water pipes, repairing roads as well as crime and grime.
“Residents are urged to keep their areas clean and comply with Municipal bylaws. We urge communities to refrain from destroying Municipal infrastructure which costs the City millions to repair. We must protect infrastructure and facilities from destruction and vandalism. It is a setback for government to repair an existing facility instead of focusing on other service delivery issues,” said Mayor Kaunda.
SDB ABM senior manager, Eurakha Singh said: “We are grateful to the municipal departments who have come out with their staff and resources to attend to the service delivery issues in Clairwood. We are aware that Clairwood faces many challenges, but together with residents and local leadership we can make a difference in sustaining the efforts of this week “
Ward 32 PR councillor Sharmaine Sewshanker welcomed the programme. “We are very pleased that this programme is taking place and that the people of Clairwood are getting some form of relief after service delivery being absent for so long in the area. It is a brilliant move to see all the city departments embark on such an initiative. We have been asking for this for many years.
“A big issue that remains is the presence of illegal trucking companies and heavy-duty trucks on residential roads. I hope that truckers don’t start damaging the infrastructure again. I welcome the service delivery but the truckers need to take heed that this is not being fixed for them to go back and damage. We can’t have a situation where we have departments that have come together to fix up Clairwood just for it to be destroyed again. Moving forward we’re going to need to enforce the law and bring them to book,” said Sewshanker.
