The KZN Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) has dismissed as ludicrous the claim by the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) that it is using water provision programmes to campaign for votes in the Nquthu municipality. The IFP’s claims are a subterfuge to divert attention from the fact that it is fully responsible together with its coalition allies for the chaos that not only led to the dissolution of this municipality but for deprivation of important services to the people of Nquthu and uMzinyathi as a whole. It is clear from their statement that the IFP is busy manufacturing spurious reasons to pre-empt its election performance or under-performance in the upcoming elections.
Let us help the IFP from the pluralistic ignorance or mistaken belief they suffer from.
Nquthu Municipality and uMzinyathi by virtue of Section 139(1C), of the supreme law of South Africa, the Constitution, is under administration and the MEC for Cogta is lawfully entrusted by the Provincial Executive, with the task of driving service delivery, development and functioning of the two municipalities, while the political failure by parties to govern is being resolved through a democratic process of by-elections.
The efforts to assist and support Nquthu municipality by the MEC for Cogta, Nomusa Dube-Ncube and her department commenced with immediate effect in September 2016, when it became obvious that the political stalemate in Nquthu will not be resolved speedily. As early as November 2016, when by-elections were not even an option, Cogta MEC Nomusa Dube-Ncube together with MEC for Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation, Bongi Sithole-Moloi, were leading efforts to assist communities in distress because of disasters.
Water tankers were provided since December as communities during interactions with the MEC, raised concerns about water challenges, even the supply of water storage facilities (JOJO Tanks) have been part of the solutions suggested by the communities as part of mitigating the drought crisis that is still prevalent in Nquthu. This has been happening while the IFP had its eyes firmly fixed on the power games as opposed to providing services to the people of Nquthu. Water Tankers fill-up the JOJO tanks so that people can have access to water for more days while the trucks are still supplying other wards.
The reality is that the people of Nquthu are seeing the positive impact of the intervention as opposed to the political theatrics spearheaded by the IFP and parties in council which was not benefitting the community of Nquthu. It is not therefore surprising that the IFP is now peddling falsehoods and distortions about provincial government led initiatives that have been in progress for the past seven months while the IFP and its allies were flirting with the future of the people of Nquthu.
“These interventions have been in place for a long time and when people are getting water, no one is asked a membership card or political questions, people simply get water and this was suggested by the communities themselves. The net-effect of the IFP concerns is that now that there would be by-elections in Nquthu, people must not get services. As the government that put the interest of the people above narrow partisan political interested we do not accept the IFP narrative and we are committed to bring non-stop, never ending service delivery to the people of Nquthu” said Cogta MEC Nomusa Dube-Ncube
“As Cogta we are interested in good governance and service delivery in Nquthu and uMzinyathi and not conspiracy theories that are baseless and a complete fabrication. The JOJO tanks issue is just a scarecrow and a decoy to divert attention from the havoc that the IFP led coalition arrangements have wreaked in Nquthu. The IFP can’t sustain their justification for letting down the voters hence they create mannequins. Our first priority has always been to ensure that both Nquthu and uMzinyathi are fully functional and able to deliver municipal services to their residents. No other issue is of interest to Cogta other than these priorities,” Dube-Ncube concluded.
For more information contact: KZN Cogta spokesperson Lennox Mabaso, 082 884 2403 or Msawakhe Mayisela on 0609664220
Ends.