'Johannesburg cannot fail' - Mayor Morero
Over two days, President Cyril Ramaphosa and his cabinet met with the Joburg management and the Gauteng government, where he expressed disappointment in the poor state of the city.
The newly-elected Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg is Dada Morero. City of Joburg
JOHANNESBURG - Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero says he’s confident his government will get the city working, after facing criticism from the president.
Over two days, President Cyril Ramaphosa and his cabinet met with the Joburg management and the Gauteng government.
During the meeting, Ramaphosa expressed disappointment in the poor state of the city.
Morero said he’d ensure the city is restored.
“The message is one and the message is clear, Johannesburg cannot fail. It contributes just around 16% towards the GDP. So naturally it can’t fail. All of us have to come together to make Johannesburg work.”
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Meanwhile, concerned civil society organisations have presented a plan to the government on how the city of Johannesburg can be restored to its former glory.
The organisations met Ramaphosa and his cabinet on Friday afternoon, at the metro’s headquarters in Braamfontein.
They told the president it appears there is no political will to address service delivery shortfalls in the city.
“Accountability is but a slogan. Water can flow, electricity can go out. Nobody has ever been held accountable for it, and nobody loses their jobs when they don’t do their job in the city.
That was the Ahmed Kathrada foundation’s Neeshan Balton, telling cabinet that the word “accountability” has almost become non-existent in the city of Johannesburg.
He said if the government is indeed serious about turning the metro around, the government must crack the whip on incompetent city officials.
“There must be a review of all senior managers at CoJ [City of Johannesburg] and entities whether they can do what they are employed to do. We think that these boards must be scrapped. If they can’t be scrapped, change the composition.
The Gauteng government has welcomed the submission by civil society, emphasising the need of collaboration between the two.