THE City of Johannesburg, Council approved the appointment of Mr Tshepo Makola as the Executive Director of the Johannesburg Emergency Services at its last sitting held on the 08 December 2011.

The position of Executive Director Emergency Management Service in the City of Johannesburg became vacant after the departure of the former head Dr Audrey Gule earlier this year. Mr Makola was then appointed as the Acting Head of EMS.

Given the fact that these were temporary arrangements, the City of Johannesburg embarked on a recruitment process to fill the position and bring stability to the EMS leadership.

The appointment of Mr Makola came after a vigorous recruitment process where about 35 CV's were received and evaluated. Interviews with the most suitable were conducted by a panel consisting of the City Manager and Members of the Mayoral Committee.

Introducing the new head of EMS to the staff earlier this week, the Member of the Mayoral Committee for Public Safety, Councilor Matshidiso Mfikoe said: "I have a pleasure in announcing that Mr Tshepo Lazarus Makola has been appointed Executive Director of Emergency Management Services as from the 1st December 2011.He has been the Acting Executive Director, since Dr. Gule vacated the position in July 2011. Please colleagues let us give him the support he needs to carry out the departmental mandate of saving lives and property".

For more information contact:
Nthatisi Modingoane
Deputy Director: Communications
CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
Tel: (011) 407 7354
Fax: 403 3494
Cell: 082 467 9228
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

THE City of Johannesburg, its municipal entities (including City Power and Johannesburg Water), and the Property Owners and Managers Association ("POMA") and its members (who own or manage numerous residential and commercial properties particularly in the inner city of Johannesburg) have agreed to issue the following joint media statement.   

1. It is confirmed that :
   1. The City and its municipal entities have a constitutional entitlement and obligation to collect revenue; and
   2. The City and its municipal entities are empowered by law to effect disconnection and cut-off of services due to non payment.
2. The disconnection of services may only take place in accordance with applicable procedures. In particular this requires inter alia that:
   1. Correctly billed accounts must be issued to consumers.
   2. A reasonable opportunity will be afforded to consumers to settle arrear accounts or make appropriate arrangements satisfactory to the City and its municipal entities.
   3. Prior to disconnection/restriction, consumers must have been given adequate and fair advance notice and an opportunity to challenge the accuracy of the accounts as per the City's bylaws.
3. In relation to a pending application brought in the South Gauteng High Court by POMA and its members, the parties have reached an amicable settlement to deal with the interim relief sought by the applicants. The parties will jointly request the High Court on Thursday 15 December 2011 to confirm the City's undertaking to adhere to its legal duties as set out above.
4. The City has already embarked upon a programme which deals with and will continue to deal with the revenue collection and customer relations services. The undertaken programme capacitates, optimises and streamlines the functioning of the revenue collection and customer relations services which includes:
   1. Reminders to consumers to pay accounts. This will be in the form of the monthly statement and/or a telephone call advising customers to pay the account and the outstanding arrears within 20 days.
   2. If this is not done, consumers will be issued with a pre-termination notice giving them 14 days within which to settle the account or make satisfactory arrangements.
   3. Any consumers who lodge queries or challenges to the accounts will be allowed the opportunity to do so and the City will assess these queries, make any appropriate adjustments to accounts (if any) and notify consumers of the outcome and any reasons in relation thereto.
   4. Where a consumer has lodged a legitimate revenue related query, services to which that query relates will not be disconnected  until the query is resolved and the consumer notified accordingly. 
   5. The City must inform the consumer in writing of its decision as soon as possible and must give the consumer 21 days to pay the amount found to be due and payable.
5. These arrangements will be applied to all consumers.
6. Notice is specifically drawn to the provisions of the bylaws which are obtainable from any municipal office or the website of the City of Johannesburg and in particular that:
   1. The municipality is entitled to raise charges in respect of an  estimate for water and electricity for a maximum period of 180 days.
   2. In the event of a query being logged the consumer must continue to make payments of a reasonable amount (equal to the average of the preceding three months account which are not in dispute) in relation to the amount in dispute.  The consumer must, regardless of the query, pay all amounts that are not in dispute.
7. The City invites consumers who have not received their monthly statement by the seventh day of each month to contact the City for such statements.
8. The consumer must provide the municipality with their current contact, and postal details at the following email address: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
9. All queries and complaints are to be directed in writing supported by such relevant documentation to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Thuso House, 61 Jorrisen Street, Braamfontein.

Neither party condones a culture of non payment and the parties urge the consumers to act pro actively by approaching the municipality to rectify any queries that they have.

Contact person:
Nthatisi Modingoane
Deputy Director: Communications
CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
Tel: (011) 407 7354
Fax: 403 3494
Cell: 082 467 9228
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

THE City of Johannesburg's Human Development - Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) Unit - will be hosting its annual Mayoral Every Child's Birthday Party for 1 300 orphaned children ranging from six to 16 years old on Saturday December 10 at the Innes Free Park in Sandton.

The children have been invited from all over Johannesburg from 118 NGOs and Early Childhood Development centres that form part of the City's ECD programmes which provide early learning services and childhood development programmes to these children.

The objectives for this event are to acknowledge that each child has a birth date and that day is celebrated and to ascertain that children who might not have a birthday celebration are given an opportunity to enjoy this day to its fullest with other children.

The event will begin at 09h00 with breakfast for children and the City of Joburg Mayor, Parks Tau. The Mayor will give a birthday message to the children while cutting the birthday cakes which have been specially made for the occasion.

Thereafter children will have fun and play on the giant jumping castles, merry-go-rounds and be entertained by different celebrities who will give live performance and play music. At lunch time each child will be presented with a gift and party pack to take home.

December 10th is the last day of Johannesburg and South Africa commemorating 16 Days of Activism for no violence against Women and Children.

For media enquiries, kindly contact:
Ms Thembelihle Radebe         
Communication Specialist
City of Joburg Public Liaison
Tel: 011-407-7353
Cell: 082 377 3747
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

JOHANNESBURG status as "the most productive Metro" in South Africa confirms the growing confidence that local residents and the business community have in the quality of governance in the City.

This is according to results of the annual survey conducted by research house, Municipal IQ, which placed Johannesburg at the top of the list of the country's nine largest cities for the fifth year in a row.

The results reflect the gains the City is making in the provision of human and strategic infrastructure to facilitate development in its endeavours to build a resilient, liveable, sustainable urban environment – underpinned by infrastructure supportive of a low-carbon economy.

The Municipal Productivity Index analyses different data to measure how productive the average of a South African municipality can be. It takes into account poverty and the city's responses to alleviate poverty; access to a minimum level of services; economic infrastructure used by residents to participate in the economy; the quality of financial governance and the vacancy rates in personnel.

When all these factors are taken into consideration Johannesburg tops all the country's municipalities. The report released recently rates Johannesburg the best with a combination of local economic conditions and resilient spending.   

The City has embarked on a comprehensive programme to provide accessible, quality services such as water, electricity and sanitation to all its residents and to introduce support measures for indigents who are unable to pay in full for services.

To support productivity in the business sector Johannesburg has made significant gains in the provision of public transport (Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit), safety and security (the roll-out of CCTV cameras) and communications (the City-wide broadband project).

Confidence in the City will continue to grow as the current processes to roll out the Revenue and billing roadmap intensifies.

For more information:   
Nthatisi Modingoane
Deputy Director: Communications
CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
Tel: (011) 407 7354
Fax: 403 3494
Cell: 082 467 9228
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

THE leadership of the local government around the world is meeting to discuss the Local Government Programme for Climate Change at Durban City Hall as part of the COP 17.

More than 100 mayors around the world have attended the Durban Local Government Convention on adapting to a changing climate. COP 17 in Africa is an opportunity to highlight the issue and the importance of a balanced response to climate change that put emphasis on adaptation as an immediate challenge of the municipalities of the developing world while recognizing the need to contribute to the reduction of the green house emissions.

Cheikh Mmadou Abiboulaye Dieye’, Mayor of the City of Saint Louis, Senegal; Vladimir Mata, City Administrator, Dagupan City, Philippines; Ayfer Baykal, Mayor for Environment of the City of Copenhegen, Denmark; Stephen Mandel, Mayor of the City of Edmonton, Canada; Parks Tau, Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, South Africa and Samuel Okello, Mayor of Kisumu Municipal Council, Kenya presented their cities case study on adapting to a changing climate during the Durban Local Government Convection.

The City of Johannesburg Executive Mayor, Clr Parks Tau said, “The City of Johannesburg has completed a risk and vulnerability study that forms the basis of the Adaptation Action Plan. Climate model projections for the City of Johannesburg indicate that the local climate is likely to become both significantly hotter and more humid in future”.

As a result of these and other projected climatic changes, a number of risks have been identified and which have been categorized as follows:

• Risk T1: Increase in Heat-Related Deaths
• Risk T2: Increased Energy Demand
• Risk T3: Increased Water Demand (within the City of Joburg)
• Risk TP5: Biodiversity Impacts on Disease Vectors (Health Risks)
• Risk P1: Urban Flood Risk – Damage to Water Supply & Sanitation Infrastructure
• Risk P2: Urban Flood Risk – Damage to Property, Personal Injury and Impacts on Livelihood
• Risk P3: Urban Flood Risk – Increased Road Accidents and Traffic Congestion
• Risk P4: Urban Flood Risk to Electrical & Telecom Infrastructure
• Risk X1: Disruption to Water Security (arising from outside the City of Joburg)
• Risk X2: Climate-Change-driven Refugees and Migrants

The City of Johannesburg has developed and approved a JOBURG 2040 strategy, which is based on building three key outcomes namely: Sustainability, Resilience and liveability – these are based on four pillars, human and social development, inclusive economic growth, governance and environment and services.

As Johannesburg continues to develop, it faces the challenge of ensuring growth does not negatively affect the carrying capacity of the natural environment. The concepts of sustainability, resilience and liveable urbanism find greater synergy here. Ideas relating to the environment and services, in the context of sustainability and resilience, are fundamentally about Johannesburg’s ability to manage its resource scarcity, ensuring that decisions and actions hold the least harm for the environment, while delivering on a realistic set of service responsibilities with the support of appropriate infrastructure networks.

Tau said, “The City has developed structures and programs which provide and capacitate communities to develop local solutions to mitigate against disasters and this is achieved through community education and awareness”

The City of Johannesburg has an institutional capacity to reduce vulnerability to climate and disaster risk including departments such as Emergency Management Services, instruments such as Joint Operation Centres, Early Warning Systems, Disaster Centres, stakeholder management systems and resource mobilization system.

Samuel Okello, the Executive Mayor of Kisumu in Kenya, said “Kisumu like other cities in the world is affected by unprecedented climate change”. Kisumu is the third largest city in Kenya.

“Kisumu is experiencing rapid urbanisation coupled with other dynamics of a fast growing city. Increased demand for space continues to erode green areas, parks, trees and agricultural surfaces reducing ability for carbon absorption, increased green house gas emission due to transport and industrial activities. Poor waste management (liquid and solid) resulting in pollution of the environment”, Okello.

Mayors have the opportunity to sign the Durban Adaption Charter publicly and request the Executive Mayor of eThekwini Municipality to formally present it on their behalves to the High Level Segment of COP17/CMP7.

ENDS

For more information contact:
Nkosinathi Nkabinde                                        
Communication Specialist                                     
City of Johannesburg Public Liaison Department                            
Tel: (011) 407-6477
Cell: 083 408 7787
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it    

THE City of Johannesburg Executive Mayor, Clr Parks Tau joined more than 100 mayors and governors from cities and states around the World who adopted the Durban Climate Change Adaptation Charter today.

The three-day Durban Local Government convention ended up proceeding yesterday afternoon with an enthusiastic plea for the COP 17 negotiators taking the role of local government more seriously in the negotiations.

“Cities are at the cutting edge of climate change pressure with rapidly expanding urban populations that are particularly vulnerable to extreme weather events and food shortage”, said David Cudman, the president of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives.

Cities mayors talked about efforts that their cities are undertaking to improve their communities’ quality of life, especially poor. They also focused on protecting and enhancing functioning ecosystems which should viewed as core municipal green infrastructure.

Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, Clr Parks Tau joined a long queue during the signing of the pledge to commit the City of Johannesburg. SALGA, Chief Executive Officer, Xolile George, said “cities are well placed to address climate change through changing the way municipal services are provided and through local regulation, leadership and innovation”.

Clr James Nxumalo, the Executive Mayor of eThekwini Municipality and the custodian if the Charter will formally present the Durban Adaption Charter on their behalf to the High Level Segment of COP17/CMP7.

Local government has not had a voice in the climate change negotiation but after two decades of global climate advocacy, last year’s COP16 in Cancun recognised local government as a key stakeholder in the global climate regime.

ENDS

For more information contact:
Nkosinathi Nkabinde                                        
Communication Specialist                                     
City of Johannesburg Public Liaison Department                            
Tel: (011) 407-6477
Cell: 083 408 7787
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it           

CITY of Joburg will be hosting a fun day for fifty abused and vulnerable children in support of 16 Days of Activism for no violence against Women and Children at Moletsane Sports Complex in Soweto on Wednesday, the 07 December 2011 from 10:00 to 14:00.

The Stakeholder Management Unit with the Region D (Soweto) plans to pledge their support by arranging this day with the aim of increasing awareness of abuse and furthermore support victims and survivors of abuse.  

The following organisations will each provide ten children and a guardian. These organizations mainly assist abused and vulnerable children by providing them with meals on a daily basis also assist them with homework and extra mural activities.

• Noah Orphanage in Mzimhlophe
• Entokozweni in Moletsane
• Red Cross in Rockville
• Carl Sithole in Klipspuit
• Photselerengwa in Mapetla

Departments within Region D (Soweto) have been requested to send at least five staff members to adopt the children for the day.

The programme of the day will include a host of activities for the children such as jungle gym, outdoor games, mentoring and support.

Issued by:
City of Joburg

For more information, please contact:
Ms Nomvula Dlame
Operations Manager: Events
City of Joburg Stakeholder Management (Region D)
Tel: 011-986-0033
Cell: 0828572611
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

For media enquiries, kindly contact:
Ms Thembelihle Radebe         
Communication Specialist
City of Joburg Public Liaison
Tel: 011-407-7353
Cell: 082 377 3747
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

CHRISTMAS arrived early for the destitute and unemployed family of 13 in White City, Soweto, yesterday when they received the keys to their newly extended house from the City of Johannesburg.

Thanks to the public-private partnership between the City of Joburg and Ikhaya Future House  Management construction company, the three bedroom house was extended with another external bedroom for the family to use.

The keys of the newly built bedroom were handed to the family by City of Johannesburg's Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) for Health and Human Development, Councilor Nonceba Molwele and her counterpart; MMC for Housing councilor Dan Bovu.

Cllr Molwele said the house was given as part of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children.

"The family which is receiving the house today is one of many families we have identified in our database as a destitute family and needing help. I'm really overwhelmed that we are able to give this family a house especially at the time when we are celebrating 16 days of activism for no violence against women, children and disabled. This family is most deserving because they are destitute and have disabled children," said Molwele.

The extended house was built by a company owned by women, Soweto Women In Construction which was subcontracted by Ikhaya Future House Management.

Cllr Bovu said he was looking forward to more public-private partnerships of this nature, where the poor can live in proper housing and at the same time women companies in construction be empowered.

The excited beneficiary of the house, Lesega Dladla, 61, said she was relieved that finally her family will have enough space to sleep in.

"I'm so excited that my children and grandchildren will now have an extra-bedroom to sleep in," said Dladla.

Issued by:
City of Joburg

For more information, please contact:
Nkosana Lekotjolo
Technical Reporter
Networks, Relationship & Stakeholder Enhancement: Directorate
Community Development
CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
Tel: 011 407 6673
Cell: 072 817 2569
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

For media enquiries, kindly contact:
Ms Thembelihle Radebe         
Communication Specialist
City of Joburg Public Liaison
Tel: 011-407-7353
Cell: 082 377 3747
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

PIKITUP reminds the citizens of Joburg again this year, not to give out Christmas gifts to waste removal staff this festive season.   

“Pikitup employees are forbidden from soliciting Christmas gifts from members of the public, as this goes against company policy for staff to take part in this tradition”, said Lawrence Boya, Acting Managing Director at Pikitup.

Boya was speaking ahead of the holiday season, warning the people of the City against individuals who masquerade as Pikitup staff requesting ‘Christmas boxes’ and ‘donations’ from the public.
 
Residents are under no obligation whatsoever to offer any gifts to Pikitup’s refuse collection staff, as the company does pay a bonus to its staff at the end of the year,” said Boya.

All residents are urged to report imposters and staff who approach or harass them for gifts or donations.

Any irregular activities are to be reported to the South African Police Services or Joburg Connect at (011) 375 5555.

        
Issued by: Pikitup

For more information please contact:
Nthatisi Modingoane
Deputy Director: Communications
CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
Tel: (011) 407 7354
Fax: 403 3494
Cell: 082 467 9228
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Nthatisi Modingoane
Deputy Director: Communications
CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
Tel: (011) 407 7354
Fax: 403 3494
Cell: 082 467 9228
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

PIKITUP the City of Joburg’s waste management entity would like to assure all Johannesburg residents and business owners that refuse collection services will continue right through the holiday period, from Friday, 16 December (Day of Reconciliation) to Monday, 26 December (Day of Goodwill) as well as on Monday 02 January a day after New Year’s Day.

Pikitup garden sites will also be fully operational on during the public holidays except on Sunday, 25 December (Christmas Day). Residents are also reminded that clean builders’ rubble can be disposed free of charge at any of the city’s four landfill sites namely, Robinson Deep, Marie Louise, Goudkoppies and Ennerdale.

For information on Pikitup’s refuse collection schedule this festive season, residents can contact Joburg Connect on 011 375 5555 or send an e-mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

        
Issued by: Pikitup

For more information please contact:
Nthatisi Modingoane
Deputy Director: Communications
CITY OF JOHANNESBURG
Tel: (011) 407 7354
Fax: 403 3494
Cell: 082 467 9228
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it