𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐤𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐫 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐝𝐨𝐧 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐬

Good morning, Councillors, Acting Municipal Manager, Officials and Members of the Public

Let us acknowledge that the administration is working hard to ensure that the advice and guidance for a Financial Recovery Plan, that was presented in this council, is adhered to.

I am hopeful that the desired outcome will manifest into stability, but most importantly on a sustainable financial route.

The agenda for today is packed with important issues to discuss constructively – and debate with solutions and proposals that are addressable.

This chamber is to discuss, debate and agree on proposals through consensus.

𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥- 𝐀𝐬 𝐈 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠…

I will report and give feedback on the implementation of Council decisions that was taken by this council.

My feedback will also include the oversight function of the Office of the Speaker.

Today, the office of the Speaker will report on the performance and functioning of the ward councillors feedback meetings for quarter 3.

These meetings were scheduled to convene in January and February for the 2024/2025 financial year.

As per the established schedule, these meetings were to engage with residents and provide them with valuable updates on ward based and municipal affairs.

These quarterly meetings aimed to foster open dialogue between council, the administration and the communities we are accountable to.

These meetings are intended to allow residents to voice their concerns, ask questions, and offer suggestions on ward based programmes and projects that directly have an impact their daily lives.

Allow me to briefly summarise the key takeaways from these meetings that took place.

The primary goal of all these scheduled meetings was to keep our communities informed on the projects and programmes for wards.

These items are raised in ward committee meetings to be formally tabled to become a legitimate part of council decision making.

Also, the Ward Based Business Plans for each ward must be implemented by the respective Town Managers and be monitored by our ward committees as part of their oversight function.

The office of the Speaker will monitor the implementation of Ward Action Plans to ensure that we don’t obliterate the voices of the Theewaterskloof citizens.

Throughout the various meetings, a number of functioning issues was identified and repeated as priority challenges.

These issues need urgent attention from our Town Managers.

𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐬;

1. Transport plans and arrangements for committee members.

2. Transport plans for community members to attend and participate.

3. Alternate meeting venues – or rotating venues. We can follow the example of Ward 2 where meetings are scheduled in each VD to ensure public participation.

4. We can book meeting venues closer to the majority of residence to take Theewaterskloof to the people.

5. The distance to and from host venues must be addressed.

6. Another issue is the fixed 7pm time that needs to be addressed – Why can’t we have meetings during the daytime in wards where the majority of people is available.

7. Lastly, ward exco membership can be adjusted to align with sectors relevant to the economic and social profiles of the ward.

Council, these concerns were expressed across both urban and rural wards.

This highlights the importance to implement our Ward Based Business Plans.

I am pleased to report that – for the most part, our ward councillors have done a commendable job in engaging with their communities through feedback meetings.

They facilitated productive discussions, responded to concerns, and made valuable notes for future action.

In most cases, attendance was reasonable, reflecting the active interest of our residents.

Issues were raised by residents with the expectation to be discussed at the next participating platforms.

𝟖 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟏𝟒 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠.

𝟔 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟏𝟒 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠.

𝐎𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟔 𝐧𝐨𝐧-𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬, 𝟏 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐞.

𝟓 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟖 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬

𝟑 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟖 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝟔 𝐯𝐚𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬.

𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝟏𝟒 𝐯𝐚𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐧-𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬.

Reporting these statistics, I am worried, and we must acknowledge that there are challenges.

Some meetings did not take place as planned due to various reasons.

Some of the reasons include low attendance in certain wards due to unforeseen circumstances.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚;

1. Communication to residents pre and on scheduled meeting dates.

2. Lack of awareness initiatives.

3. Lack of outreach programmes.

These gaps must be addressed.

Moving forward we must ensure that every ward benefits from active engagements by participating on these enabling platforms.

The office of the Speaker will try its best to improve attendance.

Public participation is crucial – not only to address issues, – but also to ensure that we are transparent in following up on the outcomes and feedback from these meetings.

The concerns of our residents should not just be heard; they must see result and outcomes that improves the quality of life their family, neighbours and friends.

I want to emphasise the importance of continued dialogue between council and the communities we represent.

We have committed ward committee members – that are committed.

They have laid the groundwork for meaningful engagements.

But they also depend on our collective responsibility to respond with actions that show we value these interactions and are committed to making a difference.

In conclusion, I want to encourage all councillors, that includes ward and PR councillors, to study the ward reports and see what each of us as councillors can do to improve meeting attendance – and do our part to foster a culture of accountability to address issues raised in public

participation meetings.

Thank you.