Former North West premier Popo Molefe (Gallo Pictures)
Former North West premier Popo Molefe is hardly sniffed or seen within the ANC corridors, however has turn out to be a profitable enterprise particular person in Knysna and thrown his lot behind neighborhood tasks.
The wrestle hero par excellence — who in his youthful days intimately knew the brutality of the apartheid system, however held on to his political convictions of justice as one of many leaders of the Black Consciousness Motion, United Democratic Entrance and the ANC — now worries about issues reminiscent of fixing potholes.
From his halcyon days of addressing cheering crowds, the 72-year-old now collaborates and expends his vitality along with his Afrikaner colleagues — or you may name them cadres of various type — in a unique human wrestle to repair the nation’s collapsing infrastructure.
“Comrade Jo,” he stated. “Now the brand new wrestle is to spruce up our cities, to take away grime and collaboratively work along with members of the Knysna neighborhood to repair potholes.
“That is what we do in Knysna, which have to be seen as an offshoot of what the Presidential Operation Vulindlela seeks to realize — to repair the infrastructure. We have to all, as South Africans, in step with the choices of the Freedom Constitution, to debunk this garbage unfold by some organisations, peddling untruths about our nation.”
That is an obvious reference to strikes by the right-wing Afrikaner rights group AfriForum and different organisations which have lobbied the USA authorities to take punitive measures towards the federal government over what they declare is the persecution of white South Africans.
“We have to work collectively, work exhausting, all of the folks of this nation, to repair our nation, to get it the place it needs to be, and to encourage as many individuals to do the identical, in little and large methods, and this by every doing little issues in our localities,” added Molefe, who can be a former chair of the Passenger Rail Company of South Africa and Transnet.
His Afrikaner comrades in Knysna embody Eugene Vermaak and Jan van der Westhuizen, each enterprise folks within the city who’re dedicated to fulfil the phrases of former US president John F Kennedy: “Ask not what your nation can do for you, however what you are able to do on your nation.”
“We’re dedicated to repair damaged roads, closing potholes and fixing bursting sewer pipes, which spill human waste within the streets, with the potential of spreading illnesses amongst communities,” stated Molefe.
He spoke towards the backdrop of a rustic battling the numerous dysfunctional municipalities, which has resulted in poor native governance, and seen a number of positioned underneath administration.
Molefe stated Vermaak and Van der Westhuizen have deployed all types of assets to make sure that the place the native council reveals weaknesses, neighborhood members are inspired to plug the holes, and contribute cash in the direction of fixing damaged infrastructure.
“Speak to those guys, and listen to for your self what sort of dedication they should mobilise neighborhood work to make sure that Knysna turns into a functioning council, and attends to infrastructural defects for the nice of the ratepayers,” Molefe stated.
They’re eager to stay apolitical of their efforts, Vermaak stated. “We don’t need to apportion blame. What we need to say is that coalition governance Knysna is failing the neighborhood by not conserving the city’s infrastructure working.
“Regardless of the difficulties, we need to state that we’re dedicated to supporting the council — our operate is to facilitate, and to not take over the operating of the council however to collaborate by doing what we are able to do to repair the potholes, and play a facilitating position to make sure that there isn’t any full dysfunctionality in our city.
“There’s a coalition of the ANC, EFF [Economic Freedom Fighters], Patriotic Alliance and Plaaslike Besorgde Inwoners. We don’t criticise. We assist the council the place it falls brief, however we have now to ensure we don’t incur authorized liabilities in no matter type, and so we are going to provide help, and accomplice with them.”
Vermaak famous that the political atmosphere is dysfunctional. “Therefore our name to neighborhood members to shoulder different features, reminiscent of closing potholes, sourcing water pipes, which needed to be flown from Botswana, in addition to getting technical experience to repair damaged infrastructure, reminiscent of waste water remedy vegetation, amongst others.
“We aren’t engineers, and we won’t get entangled, however we are going to converse to plumbers, converse to folks with experience in waste water remedy, for the reason that plant has been out of fee for 2 years,” he stated.
“The plant is again in service; 10 engineers have been dispatched from Gqeberha to kind out the issue and different ancillary challenges. We’re grateful to a neighborhood businessman who funded the undertaking, forking out R500 000.”
The enterprise folks have fashioned the Knysna Infrastructure Group, working with the council.
The group has about 10 000 members from a neighborhood inhabitants of about 103 000. Every member contributes R100 a month to the group’s coffers, in order that it will probably attain a sustainable goal of R100 000 a month.
Different folks contribute greater than the stipulated R100 to make sure “we manage to pay for to cowl bills and run the undertaking”.
The Knysna Enterprise Discussion board “provides worth by making the city a greater place than it was yesterday” and serves as catalyst for attracting and retaining companies within the space “to foster a thriving and sustainable neighborhood”, stated Van der Westhuizen.
Intact infrastructure was needed to draw investments to maintain the city economically afloat. For that purpose, it was essential that the neighborhood take it upon itself to repair potholes and different issues.
“We can not develop this city with out good infrastructure, and so it’s important that we commit ourselves to fixing the infrastructure, and this requires that every one of us as neighborhood make a financial contribution to take care of faulty infrastructure,” Van der Westhuizen stated.
“The ANC has good folks, however let the council concentrate on enhancing service supply, and work in the direction of enhancing the infrastructure, utilizing the cadres it has for this goal.”
Jo-Mangaliso Mdhlela is an Anglican priest and an unbiased journalist.