​On the 20^th of January 2022, I conducted an oversight visit to the Ennerdale walk-in centre. I met with Clarence Jacobs the Operations Manager as well as community leaders, in an attempt to resolve historical issues of service delivery to the Ennerdale residents.

The aim of the meeting was one of discovery, allowing the City to provide an executable plan that can be rolled out in both the short and medium term. Residents requested that, first and foremost, the billing system be fixed.

Residents have been subjected to incorrect billing for many years.

I took note of the following key issues:  

• The network is offline for days on end;
• Constant power cuts due to vandalism and cable theft;
• Computer hardware that is not up to scratch, preventing software updates;
• Contracts with the City have not been renewed as a result, tools for service delivery do not work; and
• A lack of employee training.The time spent in Ennerdale was productive, and I, on an office walkthrough, saw first-hand some of the issues that officials and residents encounter daily.

The following step is for a well-formulated action strategy to be rolled out so that city employees are capacitated with equipment that works in order to effectively provide service to our customers. Bills will also be rectified as a matter of priority.

Such quick responses to residents' needs is what the Multi-Party Government envisions as Joburg's 'Golden Start'. In the 'Golden Start', we will address key areas that are broken and need fixing while aiming to achieve other important goals in order to get the basics of service delivery right. These fundamentals will be underpinned by mayoral priorities, including:

• A city that gets the basics rights
• A safe and secure city
• A caring city
• A business-friendly city
• An inclusive city
• A well-run city
• A smart city

Issued by:

Cllr Julie Suddaby

MMC for Finance

City of Johannesburg

For further information, please contact:

Anne-Mieke Plekker

Acting Strategic Advisor to the MMC for Finance

084 430 3890