OUTA says oversight from residents, businesses will prevent City of Joburg decay

JOHANNESBURG - The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA)'s Julius Kleinhans has highlighted the crucial role civil society oversight has to play in turning the City of Johannesburg (CoJ) around.

The Joburg Crisis Alliance, a coalition of civil society organisations including OUTA that have come together to highlight the decline and decay of the city, last week made a public call for the resignation of mayor Kabelo Gwamanda.

This against the backdrop of a slew of issues around electricity and water supplies, the city’s finances, road maintenance and housing, and most recently the assassination of Zenzele Benedict Sithole -- an investigator from the city's Group Forensic and Investigation Services.

ALSO READ: 

• 'We can't allow instability to persist,' says ActionSA about Gauteng metros
• City Power’s R200 surcharge is here to stay, says Gwamanda

Kleinhans spoke to 702’s Bongani Bingwa on Monday morning.

"I think it’s very important that we create a proper oversight, civil oversight, and this is where it’s important for organised communities to start playing a bigger role within the CoJ, also businesses to start having oversight in this regard, so that we as a public can see better transparency, and also hold these individuals to account," said Kleinhans.

He said stronger leadership would go a long way in fostering the kind of support required.

"If we have proper leadership in place with proper consequence management, taking up action and ensuring the right people are in the right places serving the public properly, then there's no doubt that as a collective, citizens, businesses will definitely partner with strong leadership to turn this city around," he said.