The Select Committee of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Water and Sanitation, and Human Settlements in the National Council of Provinces has expressed concern at the violence accompanying the dispute between the city and striking workers in Tshwane.
Committee chairperson China Dodovu said: ‘The burning of critical infrastructure is unacceptable as it will put undue pressure on the delivery of services upon the resolution of the dispute. There is no acceptable justification for the destruction of valuable property and these acts of violence must stop. But for this to happen both sides must be committed to engagement.’
The statement from the committee said that, regarding Tshwane’s legal process to be exempted from the bargaining council determinations, it was important for the various parties to remain engaged.
‘The committee had recently visited the City in July to assess the implementation of the financial recovery plan and highlighted concerns that the City had inadequate skills to drive the plan. The municipality informed the committee that it was struggling to fill various critical Section 56 of the Municipal Systems Act Managers including the Chief Financial Officer which will be essential in implementing the envisioned plans. Also, the committee highlighted that the municipality had to strengthen stakeholder engagement,’ the statement continued.
Dodovu said that ‘a hardened approach’ would lead to a deterioration of services, and compound the problem. He concluded by calling upon law enforcement groups to cooperate with the City in dealing with criminality.