City books
public hearings on IDP
By Tabisa Mntengwana
30 April 2009
RESIDENTS have been urged to attend hearings on the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and budget that Buffalo City has scheduled to take place in community halls, schools and churches.
The hearings will begin on Friday, 8 May, at Living Waters Church in Scenery Park.
City officials would be on hand at some of these venues to talk to people in their wards about Buffalo City’s development plans, what had been achieved in terms of their priority areas, the challenges and the plans that were in store, said the municipal spokesperson, Samkelo Ngwenya.
The meetings are part of the municipality’s public participation process, which enables ordinary citizens to add their input to the IDP for the 2009/10 financial year. They are also a platform to encourage residents to play a role and participate in becoming authors of their own development through making direct input in the IDP.
“During the hearings, citizens will be told of new ground-breaking projects, those that will be continued and be solidified, and those that are long term, while revealing the projects’ status in terms of completion,” Ngwenya said.
“We will also afford the citizens an opportunity to interact, pose clarity-seeking questions and make input into our plans.”
The City also wants to promote a culture of performance management and benchmarking with the hope that the hearings with residents will guide and motivate it towards achieving the best.
At the hearings, key City achievements will be shown in audio and DVD clips in Xhosa and English. A PowerPoint presentation will focus on Buffalo City’s key issues and priorities emanating from the draft IDP, proposed tariff increases, welfare package, housing provision and feedback from previous public consultations.
Simpiwe Seti, the manager in the IDP and budget integration department, said the hearings formed part of an ongoing review of the IDP 2009/10. The City’s progress so far would be discussed.
Other venues where meetings will be held include the NU 12 Community Hall, Xhamini Hall, Nolizwe Mnyaka Community Hall and Parkside Hall.
“We are devoted to improving the lives of our people and transforming them from their current unjust socio-economic conditions to positive development and ultimately prosperity,” said Ngwenya.
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