I’m optimistic about the reforms that will take place in municipalities over the course of this year. While many people will have gripes with finance minister Enoch Godongwana’s budget speech, I’m glad municipal deficits will be addressed.
As ordinary citizens, we notice improvements in our municipalities. Whether it’s service delivery, account administration or public engagement, it is encouraging to know that financial and management interventions will be made to improve our townships and cities.
With that said, I hope the reforms will address my biggest gripe with local government, which is poor communication in times of crisis. This is especially prevalent for us Sowetans, who get updates on water outages and infrastructure updates from group chats rather than from official sources who represent Joburg Water or the relevant authorities.
Corrupt officials use a lack of proper communication to avoid accountability, as it is hard to point fingers when you do not know who is responsible for the mess.
Finally, may we citizens also keep tabs on developments in our communities so we are not at the mercy of occasional Facebook and WhatsApp updates from unqualified neighbours. – Tisetso Tsukudu, Soweto
