The DA in Victor Khanye has requested the municipal manager, Thabo Mashabela to provide the council with a report on the work done by the acting Executive Director for Technical Services.
The incumbent has been occupying the office on a temporary basis for a period of four months, while the municipality is expected to carry out the recruitment process and appoint a candidate permanently.
After this post became vacant last year, the municipality’s hierarchy acted swiftly and asked the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) to second a suitable official to act as the Executive Director Technical Services for a period of three months.
This was merely a move to enhance cadre deployment. In his letter, CoGTA MEC, Mandla Msibi stated that the Accounting Officer will submit regular progress to council on the filling of the vacant post.
However, none of this happened, instead the council has been kept in the dark with regards to the appointment of a Director for Technical Services.
In the meantime, the municipality’s Technical Service division remains dysfunctional. Ward 6 and 9 residents have been subject to faulty street lights, compromising their safety all together.
The population of Delmas mainly consists of business, elderly people and households who need efficient services. Without street lights criminality has increased, commercial businesses in this area already have their work cut out in dealing with criminals. House break-ins and cable thefts are also on the rise and perpetrators are not held accountable.
Notably our stormwater drain and water infrastructure is also on the brink of collapsing. In some parts of the municipality, residents go for long hours without water. This is evident that there is a crisis in the municipality’s technical service department.
ANC policies have once again failed residents. The municipality is in need of a skilled independent Director for Technical Services who will urgently work on a turnaround strategy and make sure that the department delivers efficient services.