By Tabisa Mntengwana
04 August 2009

Buffalo City Executive Mayor Zukisa Faku was officially sworn in on 31 July 2009 by magistrate Nazeen Joemath at the East London City Hall.

During the ceremony Faku declared that she will uphold the country’s Constitution, be faithful to the country and perform her all functions as executive mayor of Buffalo City.

Although Faku was only recently sworn in, she is not new to the job.

She has been acting mayor of the city since January 2009 and has a number of successes under her belt. These include handing over 300 houses to residents of Tyutyu village near Bhisho in March 2009, opening an East London wellness centre in June and handing over a consignment of tractors to developing farmers in Needs Camp in East London, also in June.

Among the dignitaries at Faku’s inauguration were former boxers Vuyani Bungu and Happyboy Mgxaji, chairperson of the East London Industrial Development Zone Zolile Tini, South African President Jacob Zuma’s fourth wife Nompumelelo Zuma, youth council members, traditional leaders, business people, representatives from the African National Congress’s Women’s League and delegates from sports associations.

The day began with the hoisting of the national flag and the singing of the national anthem in front of the city hall.

After Speaker of the council Luleka Simon officially opened the inauguration ceremony, Faku delivered her State of the City address.

In her speech, Faku looked at service delivery in Buffalo City, reflected on the city’s performance over the past year and announced plans for the coming year.

She outlined the five priority development areas the city will embark on in the next financial year: roads and transport, electricity, water and sanitation, housing and land and waste management.

In her speech Faku also thanked residents, councillors and other guests for “affording me this opportunity to report on the state of Buffalo City and in that same vein, unveil our plans and provisions for the continued development of the city, and its people and the sustenance of our service delivery”.

She underlined the stability and performance of Buffalo City Council which had been addressed at a recent strategy session, saying that “we have made a clear commitment to reverse all kinds of ridicule against the municipality”.

She also mentioned that the city will work on instilling new values of service within its employees.

In her plans for the coming year, Faku said that the municipality will work hard to have a reliable waste management service and cooperate with communities “to ensure that the objectives of improved public health, public safety and economic development are met”.

On the issue of water conservation, Faku said there are relevant interventions in place to ensure that by the end of this year “we will have saved in excess of 50ml a day, making sure that sufficient bulk portable water is available for residential and commercial demands”.

Faku also mentioned plans to upgrade electricity infrastructure. She said more than R3-million had been set aside to revamp substations in Buffalo City and install new lightning services, including street lights and high-mast lighting.

On the issue of health, Faku said that the city has made provision for better healthcare services.

“As the municipality we have to ensure that communities that are situated no more than 5km from the nearest healthcare facility and are provided with permanent or mobile clinics.”

Buffalo City, together with the provincial department of health, has undertaken to help improve the quality of services provided by the existing 29 clinics in the city.

Faku also mentioned the city’s plans to fight HIV/Aids, illegal and under-age circumcision and swine flu.

Faku stressed that the municipal health sector needs attention and certain clinics must be upgraded.

“We also have to increase our health awareness campaigns to educate and sensitise our communities about the health and healthy lifestyles.”

The tarring of roads in Mdantsane is also one of the mayor’s priorities. So far 40km of the allocated 300km has been tarred. The city plans to tar 55km by the end of the year, “leaving us with a backlog in excess of 240km”, Faku said.

“I should make a point that the tarring of roads in Mdantsane is not only about improving access and mobility, but also about improving health conditions and the environment.”

The municipality also plans to tar 20km of roads in Duncan Village.

While presenting the budget speech in May this year, Faku said the city had a huge housing backlog, both along the coast and inland.

The municipality currently has about 19 000 units under various stages of construction and the target is to complete at least 5 000 houses during the current financial year.

Faku said that the city has at least 30 000 freestanding and backyard shacks. To tackle this 32 000 sites have been identified for the development of more substantial housing in terms of the Municipality Housing Policy and Implementation Plan.

The city, together with the provincial department of human settlements, has committed to building housing units in the Second Creek area. This project aims to accommodate at least 300 families.

Expected in this financial year is the construction of 850 housing units in Manyano and Tembelihle, 1 500 in Mdantsane and 2 221 units in the West Bank Restitution Project, 140 units in Haven Hills South, 320 units in Duncan Village and 1 000 units in Reeston.

In her address the executive mayor said she had set aside R15-million in her budget for ward-based mayoral projects that have potential to create jobs.

She also mentioned skills training programmes that have been developed to benefit labourers and the youth.

She added that 55 hawker stalls will be constructed in the East London area as a pilot project.

The mayor also has plans for the fire and rescue service in the city.

The aim is to send 60 of the city’s firefighters on a basic ambulance course before the end of the year and increase the fire engine fleet to improve response time to fires.

Although no games will be hosted in Buffalo City during the 2010 Fifa World Cup, Faku said the city is lobbying to be a “base camp” for international football teams during the tournament.

In tying up her address, the mayor encouraged residents, stakeholders and councillors to make a difference in people’s lives and promote the city as one of the best places to live, work and play in.

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