 Mayor and
his team visit Alex
The concerns of residents in Region E were raised at various
community meetings during a mayoral road show.
REBECCA Raphasha, a new resident of Alexandra Extension 9, could not
stop singing the praises of Executive Mayor Amos Masondo and his team
for giving her a "great upstairs house".
"Oh, Mr Masondo and your team, may the good Lord give you many more
days to live. Thank you very much. I promise to take care of this
house."
Many of the people allocated the new houses in the suburb were moved
from the township's Setjwetla informal settlement. Built on the banks
of the Jukskei River, the squatter camp suffered during the rainy
season.
The official handing over of keys to Raphasha and many others was part
of Masondo's mayoral road show of Region E that started in the early
hours of Thursday, 22 October.
Close to the ground
The mayor said the purpose of the road show was for government
officials and political heads to be sensitised to people's problems.
"Nothing can substitute direct contact with communities. The closer
you are to the ground, the better your chances of understanding the
needs of communities."
To see first-hand the dire housing needs of people in Alexandra, the
road show crew went to Helen Joseph, the women's hostel. Here they
were welcomed by ululating and singing residents, who showed the City
officials the unpleasant living conditions at the hostel.
Drains were blocked; the buildings were dilapidated; and the hostel
was overcrowded. The distressed mayor acknowledged that people could
not continue living in such conditions.
"We know that your problems are real; they are not imagined. We are
here to make a commitment that we will do something about the
situation," he said to a crowd of women who had gathered around to
listen. "We think that the women of Helen Joseph deserve better."
From one hostel to another, and the visitors drove passed Madala, the
male hostel in Alexandra. Because of the rain, however, they could not
go inside.
A convoy led by wailing sirens stopped at the Eighth Avenue
Multi-Purpose Community Centre, which was taken over by the
Johannesburg Property Company less than three months ago. At the time,
it was not properly maintained, but now proper leases are being drawn
up by the company so that tenants can start paying rent.
The centre consists of among other things, a library, a satellite Home
Affairs Department and a City Power desk.
River Park Library
Still on the way through Alex, the convoy stopped briefly at the River
Park Library for its official opening. Masondo unveiled a plaque and
took the opportunity to encourage both young and old to read.
"Books are important, whether it is a Koran or a Bible or something
else, but books are important because they give us a different view of
the world."
The library was built four years ago; it has four staff members and 18
959 books, which include children's fiction, high school and primary
school study materials, history, science and health books.
From the library, the road show route went passed the 520 Rented Room
Project in Far East Bank. Completed in July 2008, the housing
development consists of 520 rooms for rent.
The rooms have solar geysers, communal bathrooms, washing up areas,
vegetable gardens and security. Renting a room costs only R350 a
month, and there is a crèche and playground in the complex.
The daylong mayoral road show programme included three community
meetings, the first of which was held at China City at 32 Derrick
Avenue in Cyrildene. Here Masondo and the consul-general of China in
Johannesburg, Fung Li - in the presence of community members -
discussed a way forward regarding illegal structures not built
according to town planning.
Chinese community
They also explored ways to forge links with Joburg's Chinese community
for effective management of the area.
"We do not come to a Chinese community as people who know it all; far
from it, we are coming to engage and hear your needs," Masondo said.
"The second reason we are here is so that the people in this community
have a sense of government."
He also reminded community members, however, that when in Joburg, they
must abide by the City's by-laws.
The mayor's words were echoed by the consul-general, who said: "Joburg
is a big residential area for Chinese people. I can say that 90
percent of the Chinese people who come to Africa reside in Joburg, but
I just want to remind you that we must abide by the South African
law."
Paterson Park Recreation Centre in Norwood was the venue of the second
community meeting. Here the mayor engaged with the community policing
forum, the South African Police Service and the Johannesburg metro
police department about the safety concerns of residents in the
suburbs of Norwood and Orange Grove.
They complained about 13 illegal liquor shops on Louis Botha Avenue,
as well as clean up operations that only took place on a half-yearly
basis, and the lack of manhole covers.
Noting needs
Responding to their concerns, the mayor assured community members
that their pleas had not fallen on deaf ears. He told them that the
mayoral committee members of the various departments on the road show
had noted their needs and would make sure that they were met.
He also had strong words for those who stole manhole covers. "Poor
people do not have any rights to destroy municipal infrastructure;
nobody does," he said.
The last community meeting was at the Marlboro Community Hall with
residents of Marlboro and Alex raising concerns about housing
shortage, community development and not receiving first priority.
The member of the mayoral committee for housing, Ruby Mathang,
responded that the City was working very hard to change the face of
Alexandra in terms of housing.
His colleague, Parks Tau, the committee member for finance, said no
township was better than another in the City's view. Budgets were
allocated according to the nature of needs in the various communities
and townships.
In answering the question about community development, the member of
the mayoral committee in that sector, Bafana Sithole, said his door
was always open to those who had ideas that might improve arts and
culture activities in Alexandra.
Region E is home to Sandton, an upmarket suburb, and Alexandra, an old
township with a significant place in South Africa's history. Its
long-standing poverty was worsened by the violence of the political
struggle that led to a democratic South Africa, and by a continuing
influx of informal settlers.
Also part of the region is Marlboro, Linbro Park, Modderfontein,
Rounders Hill, Orange Grove and Norwood. Its residents are a mix of
highly paid professionals, middle-income workers and lower paid
labourers. There is also a high level of unemployment, especially in
Alexandra.
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