LETTER: DA will work for better metro if it catches municipal bus

IN his letter, Mike Watson referred to a saying about dogs chasing buses (“What will DA do if it gets metro?”, April 19). If the DA were in fact chasing a bus in Nelson Mandela Bay we would be hard pressed to find one that actually works.

Such has been the catastrophic failure of the ANC-led administration in establishing a public transport system in our metro.

The DA has an exciting vision for Nelson Mandela Bay based on six pillars: the opportunity city, the caring city, the safe city, the inclusive city, the forward-thinking city and the well-run city.

This vision will be upheld and reinforced by the DA’s detailed local government manifesto to be launched on Saturday at the Rand Stadium in Johannesburg.

This vision has been communicated extensively in the media as well as through widespread door-to-door campaigns.

As part of my 60 wards in 60 days tour and on an ongoing basis, I visit every single ward numerous times to engage with residents on this vision and to understand their bread-and-butter issues.

The DA’s plans to tackle these issues are no secret, and contain new and innovative ideas to make Nelson Mandela Bay a world-class city.

We have showcased the DA’s successes in establishing a functional metro police force in Cape Town and unambiguously declared our intention to do the same in Nelson Mandela Bay.

The Cape Town metro police make more than 1 000 gang-related arrests per month. This is the DA difference. Cutting corruption does not happen by dishing out golden handshakes as is the habit of the current administration.

The DA believes that supply chain management is the nexus of corrupt activities in Nelson Mandela Bay. As such we have proposed making bid adjudication committee meetings open to the public to improve transparency and accountability, like we have done in Cape Town.

Improving the living conditions of our most vulnerable residents has been discussed repeatedly during our campaign. We have proposed the reblocking of informal settlements (see picture) to improve the dignity of these forgotten communities.

Our focus on creating jobs has been there for all to see. We have spoken about revitalising the Bay’s tourism model to ensure that we attract more tourists and in turn create more jobs.

Destination marketing is key and we will get this right. The DA’s intention to establish job zones to incentivise investment and opportunity centres to support SMMEs has also been a major focus of our campaign.

The DA has announced the red tape reduction unit to cut bureaucratic red tape and roll out the red carpet to investors. We have proposed, in council and in our campaign, a “broken buildings” by-law to stall urban decay and promote urban regeneration by holding offending landlords accountable. Keeping our city clean is important for our residents and our visitors.

The DA will work together with any official who is committed to serving the people of Nelson Mandela Bay within the law.

The DA governed the City of Cape Town in 2006 while the ANC was the provincial government. In 2009 the DA won the provincial elections. In both the City of Cape Town and the Western Cape the DA managed to cooperate with professional civil servants regardless of their political affiliation.

We will do the same. Where officials break the law by putting party politics before the people they will be disciplined. As for the funding of themetro, national and provincial government cannot withhold equitable share funding.

With respect to housing delivery, the DA will work with the provincial government and also work towards a “serviced site model” to speed up access to those who would like to build their own homes.

This will help to accelerate delivery and promote skills development.

Innovation, good governance and partnerships will make Nelson Mandela Bay a world-class city. We do not plan to do it alone, but with the help of all residents