June 21, 2004
By Bontle Moeng
AMOS Masondo, the executive mayor of Johannesburg, was put through his paces during his road show of one of the city's regions.
On Thursday 17 June, Masondo and his team toured Region 6, which covers most of Soweto, and presided over a number of events - including the handing of title deeds to homeowners, the presentation of certificates to firemen and adult learners, and the inspection of construction sites.
An ABET graduate struggling to hold back her joy at recieving a certificate
The mayor's day started at the Jabulani People's Centre at 8am - where the regional director, Molwane Lephunga, and his team had been excitedly awaiting Masondo's address. They also had an opportunity to meet the members of the mayoral committee.
The mayor's Metrobus then passed Zola Clinic and headed for the Zola offices.
On the way Roy John, the Nancefield depot manager for the Johannesburg Roads Agency, pointed out the achievements of the Zivuseni Pavement Project. He said the agency had trained local people to build a 3,750km pavement with 2,2km of kerbing.
At the Zola administration offices, these people - who were employed as workers or contractors - received certificates for kerb laying and construction.
Masondo then handed title deeds to several residents at Zola and Emdeni, and was greeted with joyful shouting and ululating.
The mayoral committee member for municipal enterprises, Mary Ntingane, also took the opportunity to hand over a lease that allows the Zimisile community to establish a vegetable garden on five council properties.
The bus then moved on to the Emdeni Library, which has been selected for Want to Read, a project the Carnegie Corporation of New York has sponsored to revitalise public libraries in Africa.
Christine Walters, the mayoral committee member for social development, handed out 39 adult-education certificates in the packed library.
The tour then turned to construction work around Soweto, such as the building of the 1,5km Emdeni link road and the 70m Klip River bridge - which will join Green Village, Slovoville and Tshepisong. The construction, which will cost R18-million, will be completed in October 2005.
The next stop was the Thubelisha Housing Project in Doornkop, where women contractors are building more than 100 houses.
Masondo and his entourage then went to Tshepisong, which is near the R-588 road, to survey the Tshepisong Multipurpose Centre - a R7-million project to build sports fields, a community hall and a library. It has created 108 jobs.
At Slovoville, City Power's chief executive, Mogwailane Mohlala, and members of the community were waiting for the mayor to officially switch on some streetlights. The crowd cheered as the switch was thrown. So far 177 of 480 streetlights have been erected.
Masondo took the chance to emphasise the importance of electricity.
"Electricity is important as it is part of civilization; it decreases crime and people feel safer in their area," the mayor said.
The Metrobus then left Slovoville for the Sizwile School for the Deaf in Dobsonville. Children in their gold and brown uniforms formed a guard of honour and waved to the guests.
Other stops along way included the African Dream Skills Development Project in Zondi - which makes shoes and does screen-printing and shoe-shining - and a sewing business.
At Thokoza Park, the Emergency Management Services launched their Special Operations Rescue Team (Sort) and the Special Medical Advanced Response Team (Smart).
The Sort squad is to be responsible for technically challenging rescues - such as those in collapsed buildings. The Smart squad will ensure that skilled staff respond to critical medical emergencies in as short a time as possible.
The head of Johannesburg's Emergency Management Services, Audrey Gule, said: "The bomb explosions in Soweto in 2002 highlighted the need to establish a team that would be competent with dealing with similar situations."
Certificates were handed out to emergency-service workers.
The Merafe Hostel in Mapetla and the upgraded Mapetla soccer grounds were the last two places visited on the mayoral road show.
Handing over title deeds in Zola
At the Merafe Hostel, the mayor met those in charge of the hostel and was given a list of suggestions. The council plans to transform the hostels into a proper residential area; a business plan to do this is to be submitted to the provincial housing department.
The Mapetla soccer grounds have been upgraded and the area has been greened and fenced.
A public meeting at Chiawelo Community Centre ended the day. Here members of the community were told about the council's activities.
Masondo responded to questions about billing, unemployment, housing, corruption and the benefits of water-saving projects.
This was the third such meeting in Region 6. For more information contact Region 6 on 011 986 0178.
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