President Ramaphosa to visit Emfuleni on 12 August
Emfuleni’s embattled municipality ELM has grabbed national headlines as a key electoral battleground and issue especially in Gauteng – with President Cyril Ramaphosa entering the fray personally with a high-level imbizo planned in the region late next week.
President Cyril Ramaphosa
Battle lines are being drawn by the political, business and civil society sectors over whether Gauteng Province should lift Section 139 (c) partial administration of an ELM widely seen until fairly recently as still completely ungovernable, dysfunctional and corrupt.
Gauteng Premier David Makhura last week announced the partial administration would be lifted end of August. But the DA nationally, and Vaal organised business and civil society have now demanded either the complete dissolution or full administration of ELM.
Core to the confrontation is the new ANC-led Coalition – voted in after the November 2021 municipal elections – and whether it should be allowed to exercise its mandate from voters as a completely fresh and untainted political administration to govern without Gauteng or national Government.
Supporters of this scenario say ELM is now stabilised and the chaotic situation on almost-endemic power blackouts caused by ELM (apart from Eskom) mismanagement in 2021 and early 2022 has also been handled effectively.
Makhura also said the Provincial Government had spent millions on upgrading 21 roads at critical points in Emfuleni (3 in Vanderbijlpark, 5 in Vereeniging, 4 in Three Rivers and 7 in Sebokeng and Evaton).
A Special Economic Zone and a Rail Corridor to link the Vaal better to the national railway grid were being implemented, Makhura said.
With both President Ramaphosa and DA Opposition Leader John Steenhuisen personally taking up ELM as a political cause, regional service delivery and clean governance issues are making Emfuleni a national political litmus test for both their parties.
President Ramaphosa is expected to visit Emfuleni on 12 August.
Upping the stakes for the ELM coalition and President Ramaphosa – and possibly allowing Steenhuisen and organised business to deny both ELM and the national Government meaningful recognition on any improvements, is the troubled Vaal River sewage pollution project.
Blighting what was one of the premier Millionaire’s Row and investment locations in South Africa and major tourist destination, are millions of litres of pure sewage still surging in streets and into the river system daily due to broken or unmaintained water and sanitation infrastructure.
Deputy Water and Sanitation Minister David Mahlobo, COGTA MEC Lebogang Maile and ELM Mayor Sipho Radebe have been widely credited with mobilising up to 50 business, civic and environmental organisations into a united front with government to tackle the ongoing crisis.
Mahlobo and Maile visit the Vaal regularly including this week when both hard-nosed politicians bluntly told hundreds of stakeholders at Emerald Resort and Casino in Vanderbijlpark on Thursday that no further delays or resistance would be tolerated to project continuation.
Mahlobo and Maile have also gained a R7billion budget for the Vaal River project for the next few years and have designated Rand Water as the official implementing agent.
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