Every day there is more and more evidence that our masters do not view themselves as accountable to citizens. There are two examples in the Mercury of October 28, 2008 which show that quite well.
The first example is local and has been mentioned in these pages before. The municipality has now declared that the report is too sensitive to be disclosed to the public. Deputy information officer Joseph David came out with that statement. Overpayments to security companies could hardly be a matter of national security and so, to my mind, there are only a few possible reasons why our employees (the municipality) should be refusing to publish a report on what happened to our money. I don't like the thiught of any of them.
The other story in the paper concerns a so-called blue-light incident in which motorists are forced off the road to make room for official motorcades. Over the years, motorists have been threatened with firearms and have, on a few occasions, been hauled out of their cars and beaten up. I have seen a couple of these convoys, which roar past at great speed past with tinted windows [surely illegal] and blue lights flashing. Never to my knowledge has anyone been brought to book for assault or intimidation or have the VIPs within been asked to account for the strongarm tactics and dangerous driving of their escorts.
The particular incident mentioned in the paper took place in Johannesburg and involved vehicles belonging to the presidential protection unit. The convoy consisted of at least six black vehicles led by two Johannesburg Metro Police Police vehicles. At least one of the officers in the convoy was seen brandishing his weapon at motorists. The president was out of the country and his deputy was not in Gauteng province. The head of the presidential protection unit, Tau Thekiso, would not say who was being driven in the convoy and Johannesburg metro police chief Wayne Minnaar apparently didn't know, in spite of the fact that his vehicles were escorting the convoy.
We will not have any sort of democracy until our officials are made to be accountable to us!
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Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Jet fuel woes
I will be creating a page on the main Facts About Durban website for our new airport at La Mercy but, in the meantime, there was an interesting story in the Sunday Tribune, of October 26, 2006, which states that there have been protests at plans to ship jet fuel from the refineries to the airport by road. The airport is apparently going to need a million litres of the stuff every day, which will take about 20 trips by road tanker, and cost between R40000 and R80000 per day to transport. Mind-boggling figures! There is the option to build a pipeline to deliver the fuel.
Mismanagement or corruption?
It was good news about the buses, as mentioned in the previous post, but the Sunday Tribune, of October 26, 2006, also carried a story to do with the episode that wasn't such good news. It turns out that the amount of government subsidy received by the Remant Alton bus company, and what it was spent on, is not open to public scrutiny. The Tribune apparently asked to see financial statements and the request was refused by Remant Alton and the municipality. There is suspicion in some quarters that the money has been misused and that there are people in bed with each other who should not be.
The ANC-appointed city manager Mike Sutcliffe dismissed such 'crazy claims' and said that there had been an oversight process. This is in spite of the fact that John Steenhuisen, leader of the Democratic Alliance caucus on the council, said that no Remant Alton financial statements had been presented to the EXCO in the last five years.
It seems pretty clear to me that there has to have been incompetance or dirty work at the cross roads but the really worrying bit is why city management is feeling the need to cover up. Are they involved? And how?
This is not the first episode mentioned in these pages which involves the municipality refusing to give us details about how our money is spent. They are actually our representatives and our employees and are supposed to be accountable to us, but they are not behaving in the least like it. Some democracy this is turning into.....
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The ANC-appointed city manager Mike Sutcliffe dismissed such 'crazy claims' and said that there had been an oversight process. This is in spite of the fact that John Steenhuisen, leader of the Democratic Alliance caucus on the council, said that no Remant Alton financial statements had been presented to the EXCO in the last five years.
It seems pretty clear to me that there has to have been incompetance or dirty work at the cross roads but the really worrying bit is why city management is feeling the need to cover up. Are they involved? And how?
This is not the first episode mentioned in these pages which involves the municipality refusing to give us details about how our money is spent. They are actually our representatives and our employees and are supposed to be accountable to us, but they are not behaving in the least like it. Some democracy this is turning into.....
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Bus strike over !!!
The good news in the Sunday Tribune, of October 26, 2006, apart from KZN winning the rugby Currie Cup yesterday, is that the strike by bus drivers is finally over. The news was very unexpected and it isn't all together clear how the breakthrough came to be. The article is a bit confused, to my eyes at least, but it seems that a deal was brokered with the help of eThekwini ANC chairperson John Mchunu. It seems that a consultative forum to decide on the future of public transport in city is to established and that it is to include driver representation. More details when I get them.
I'm very glad that things are sorted and I hope that they stay that way. I am sympathetic to the drivers but feel that they could have played the game a bit better and kept essential services running. One of the papers last week reported that disabled people were among the ones to suffer most from the strike because their bus service was also suspended and minibus taxis don't have facilities for wheelchairs. Some disabled school pupils at sleep over at their schools for a time because the strike started after they were dropped off at school and the drivers didn't even pick them up again before knocking off work. I also know that senior citizens, dependent on the buses to get out from their retirement complexes to pay bills or whatever, have had a very hard time as well.
GUYS, YOU COULD HAVE DONE BETTER.
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I'm very glad that things are sorted and I hope that they stay that way. I am sympathetic to the drivers but feel that they could have played the game a bit better and kept essential services running. One of the papers last week reported that disabled people were among the ones to suffer most from the strike because their bus service was also suspended and minibus taxis don't have facilities for wheelchairs. Some disabled school pupils at sleep over at their schools for a time because the strike started after they were dropped off at school and the drivers didn't even pick them up again before knocking off work. I also know that senior citizens, dependent on the buses to get out from their retirement complexes to pay bills or whatever, have had a very hard time as well.
GUYS, YOU COULD HAVE DONE BETTER.
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Tuesday, October 21, 2008
DSW strike
A short article in the Mercury of October 21, 2008, says that DSW refuse workers currently working for agencies will be able to apply for full-time jobs with the municipality when positions are advertised later this year. Apparently, 25% of DSW are hired through agencies. Deputy city manager Derek Naidoo has apparently said that all agency workers would NOT automatically be hired. I hope this will not be the start of more trouble if the current temporary workers see other people getting employed.
In the meantime, I took a drive through the centre of Durban today and was struck by the fact that it looked quite a lot less filthy than usual. That's progress, I suppose.
On another topic, I don't know if it's my imagination but I have the feeling that deputy city manager Derek Naidoo is being quoted in the papers a lot more lately. In the past, Mike Sutcliffe rather dominated whenever city officials were quoted and it makes me wonder if there's something cooking behind the scenes.
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In the meantime, I took a drive through the centre of Durban today and was struck by the fact that it looked quite a lot less filthy than usual. That's progress, I suppose.
On another topic, I don't know if it's my imagination but I have the feeling that deputy city manager Derek Naidoo is being quoted in the papers a lot more lately. In the past, Mike Sutcliffe rather dominated whenever city officials were quoted and it makes me wonder if there's something cooking behind the scenes.
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Sunday, October 19, 2008
Stadium bags award
I came across a press release from the Concrete Manufacturers Association that the new stadium had won an award. That's impressive whether you agree or not on the fact that its being built in the first place. The following is taken from the press release:
Picture Courtesy CMA
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Picture Courtesy CMAMoses Mabhida Stadium - Durban
Regional Winner - Coastal
Category - Innovative Products: other innovative concrete products showing ingenuity.
Straight and raking precast concrete columns were used for the construction of the Moses Mabhida Soccer Stadium. The façade incorporates cast-in-situ columns with anchor bolts up to level 3.
Precast concrete columns, comprising a stub at the base and an upper section, were placed above the in-situ columns. Steel base plates on the stub columns were custom-designed and fabricated on site to correct any discrepancies in the anchor bolts.
At 15m long and weighing up to 65 tons each, the columns were manufactured on site to exact specifications and tight dimensional tolerances. A total of 30 raked columns of varying skew angles and 200 straight columns were deployed. The weight of the straight columns held them in place, whereas the raking columns were further secured by means of a push-pull tie on the field side of the bowl. The ties were removed after the upper slab, which was tied back to the column, was in position.
Through careful calculation, using a small working model for demonstration purposes, it was determined that if the precast concrete columns were lifted slightly above the centre of gravity, they would be aligned for positioning onto the stub column.
Once the columns were correctly positioned and bolted down, the splice slabs were shuttered and filled with concrete, and the gaps grouted. The completed columns were topped by steel caps. These support ring beams which transfer the vertical and high horizontal forces off the roof.
Professional Team
Architect: BKS/Group Five Design and Planning
Consulting Engineer: BKS
Quantity Surveyor: Ibhola Lethu Consortium
Contractor: A joint venture comprising Group Five, WBHO, and Pandev
Manufacturer: Group Five, WBHO, Pandev
Product Information
104 Precast concrete columns and raking columns (approximately 50 different types)
Judges' Comments
Innovative engineering saved construction time and produced an aesthetic product.
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Saturday, October 18, 2008
Snippets from the week
I had intended to use this blog on a very occasional basis to record noteworthy things happening around the city but I'm starting to feel withdrawal symptoms if I should miss a couple of days, as happened this week when I had to go away on business. So here goes...
The Mercury of October 14, 2008, reported that Helen Zille, the mayor of Cape Town, was recently voted best mayor in the world. See mention of a reader's letter, below, for an explanation of why this is unlikely to happen in Durban. Also, according to the paper, Independent bus operators have refused Remant Alton's offer for them to take over its routes for fear of being targeted by striking workers.
The Mercury of October 15, 2008, reported that police had arrested two men for alledgedly plotting to kill a Durban Solid Waste Manager. They were arrested in Sydney Road and their car was to to contain two revolvers, ammunition, and some petrol bombs. In other news, Alfred Zondi, the chairman of the KZN Bus Council, called on the KZN Transport MEC Bheki Cele to intervene in the dispute between Remant Alton and its striking workers.
The requirements of Fifa for the World Cup in 2010 sound draconian to say the least. The Mercury reported 2010 Project Head Julie-May Ellingson as saying that, by 2010, the city will be empowered to immediately remove offending signage from buildings, especially anything which conflicts with Fifa's requirements. At the moment, the city needs a court order before it can remove signage and that's fine by me.
It's a puzzle why we should tolerate such interference in our affairs. It would have been better in the longrun to have told Fifa to keep their World Cup. It seems that the city is running out of money (not surprising when you consider the extravagance onvolved in the new stadium) because Ellingson also appealed to business for R15-million to upgrade facilities around the stadium.
In another story, the eThekwini Municipality was awarded the best credit rating of any municpality in Africa. This is bad news as far as I'm concerned, because our masters are surely going to be tempted to borrow more money on the strength of that.
Residents around Inanda Dam have been warned not to eat fish caught in the dam or vegetables grown nearby. Apparently the water has been found to contain elevayed levels of Mercury. A further study is to done.
The Mercury of October 16, 2008, reported that riot police, snipers and helicopters had prevented a march by Remant Alton and Durban Solid Waste workers through Durban the previous day. City Manager Michael Sutcliffe said the decision had been taken for security reason because the march had the potential to turn violent.
Sounds to me like something that a National Party functionary might have said in the bad old days, not a senior member of an organistion that, itself, has a long history of fighting against injustice. You'd expect the authorities to be more sympathetic to workers who feel they are victims of injustice but I guess its only injustice if it's done to you, not if its done by you...
The paper also reports that environmental affairs and tourism depty minister Rejoice Mabudafhasi has spoken negatively about the city's loss of its Blue Flag beaches. The comments were made the previous day at a meeting at the Point Yacht club to launch a national action plan to protect our coastline. A brochure describing the plan apparently says that the loss of Blue Flag status could have a severe impact on tourism and business.
A reader's letter, signed 'Saddened', in the Independent on Saturday, of October 18, 2008, has some comments about the recent award of Best Mayor in the World to Helen Zille, mayor of Cape Town. The reader says that he or she recently spent a week in Cape Town and found the streets to clean and well-maintained, that the traffic signals all worked and that he or she felt safe walking around in the evening. This contrasts strongly with the situation in Durban and the writer wonders whether this has anything to do with the fact that the DA is running Cape Town and the ANC, with its pre-occupation with minor issues such as street-renaming, is running this city.
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The Mercury of October 14, 2008, reported that Helen Zille, the mayor of Cape Town, was recently voted best mayor in the world. See mention of a reader's letter, below, for an explanation of why this is unlikely to happen in Durban. Also, according to the paper, Independent bus operators have refused Remant Alton's offer for them to take over its routes for fear of being targeted by striking workers.
The Mercury of October 15, 2008, reported that police had arrested two men for alledgedly plotting to kill a Durban Solid Waste Manager. They were arrested in Sydney Road and their car was to to contain two revolvers, ammunition, and some petrol bombs. In other news, Alfred Zondi, the chairman of the KZN Bus Council, called on the KZN Transport MEC Bheki Cele to intervene in the dispute between Remant Alton and its striking workers.
The requirements of Fifa for the World Cup in 2010 sound draconian to say the least. The Mercury reported 2010 Project Head Julie-May Ellingson as saying that, by 2010, the city will be empowered to immediately remove offending signage from buildings, especially anything which conflicts with Fifa's requirements. At the moment, the city needs a court order before it can remove signage and that's fine by me.
It's a puzzle why we should tolerate such interference in our affairs. It would have been better in the longrun to have told Fifa to keep their World Cup. It seems that the city is running out of money (not surprising when you consider the extravagance onvolved in the new stadium) because Ellingson also appealed to business for R15-million to upgrade facilities around the stadium.
In another story, the eThekwini Municipality was awarded the best credit rating of any municpality in Africa. This is bad news as far as I'm concerned, because our masters are surely going to be tempted to borrow more money on the strength of that.
Residents around Inanda Dam have been warned not to eat fish caught in the dam or vegetables grown nearby. Apparently the water has been found to contain elevayed levels of Mercury. A further study is to done.
The Mercury of October 16, 2008, reported that riot police, snipers and helicopters had prevented a march by Remant Alton and Durban Solid Waste workers through Durban the previous day. City Manager Michael Sutcliffe said the decision had been taken for security reason because the march had the potential to turn violent.
Sounds to me like something that a National Party functionary might have said in the bad old days, not a senior member of an organistion that, itself, has a long history of fighting against injustice. You'd expect the authorities to be more sympathetic to workers who feel they are victims of injustice but I guess its only injustice if it's done to you, not if its done by you...
The paper also reports that environmental affairs and tourism depty minister Rejoice Mabudafhasi has spoken negatively about the city's loss of its Blue Flag beaches. The comments were made the previous day at a meeting at the Point Yacht club to launch a national action plan to protect our coastline. A brochure describing the plan apparently says that the loss of Blue Flag status could have a severe impact on tourism and business.
A reader's letter, signed 'Saddened', in the Independent on Saturday, of October 18, 2008, has some comments about the recent award of Best Mayor in the World to Helen Zille, mayor of Cape Town. The reader says that he or she recently spent a week in Cape Town and found the streets to clean and well-maintained, that the traffic signals all worked and that he or she felt safe walking around in the evening. This contrasts strongly with the situation in Durban and the writer wonders whether this has anything to do with the fact that the DA is running Cape Town and the ANC, with its pre-occupation with minor issues such as street-renaming, is running this city.
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Saturday, October 11, 2008
Taxi strike?
The Natal Mercury of October 9, 2008, reported that the minibus taxi industry is threatening to strike in sympathy with the striking Durban Solid Waste & Remant Alton workers. The threat was made by KZN Transport Alliance Chairman Eugene Hadebe.
Meanwhile, at the launch of the SA Communist Party's Red October campaign in Umlazi on Thursday, secretary-general Blade Nzimande called on the municipality to sort out the strike forthwith. I agree with this sentiment but can't help wondering how on earth there can possibly be still be a communist party in this day and and age.
The paper has a splendid aerial picture of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and a number of other vessels, including the SAS Drakensberg and SAS Isandlwana, particpating in exercises (Operation Flower II) off Durban. So that's why needed we needed those smart and expensive frigates!
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Meanwhile, at the launch of the SA Communist Party's Red October campaign in Umlazi on Thursday, secretary-general Blade Nzimande called on the municipality to sort out the strike forthwith. I agree with this sentiment but can't help wondering how on earth there can possibly be still be a communist party in this day and and age.
The paper has a splendid aerial picture of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and a number of other vessels, including the SAS Drakensberg and SAS Isandlwana, particpating in exercises (Operation Flower II) off Durban. So that's why needed we needed those smart and expensive frigates!
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Another truck torched
The natal Mercury of October 9, 2008, reported that a fifth vehicle belonging to Durban Solid Waste had been set alight the previous day, Wednesday.
As I've said before, I have some sympathy with the strikers but I cannot condone arson or attacks of any sort in furtherance of their aims. I'm sure the majority of the strikers are honest decent people but attacks of this nature are likely to set people against them.
The same paper reports that talks are to begin between the ANC and the IFP about the proposal to rename of Mangosuthu Highway fter Griffiths Mxenge, an ANC activist.
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As I've said before, I have some sympathy with the strikers but I cannot condone arson or attacks of any sort in furtherance of their aims. I'm sure the majority of the strikers are honest decent people but attacks of this nature are likely to set people against them.
The same paper reports that talks are to begin between the ANC and the IFP about the proposal to rename of Mangosuthu Highway fter Griffiths Mxenge, an ANC activist.
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Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Short updates
The bits and pieces of news have been piling up so I thought I'd have a clear-out.
Sunday Tribune - October 5, 2008.
The paper reports that there are plans to declare the beachfront area a glass-free zone and outlaw public drinking. This is in response to the events described I described here. In addition, on the Friday night, there was a strong police presence and mini-bus taxis and buses were barred from entering the beachfront area. There are apparently also plans to keep a track of where buses and taxis come from in future.
In act assumed to be somehow connected with the bus drivers' strike, 19 buses were set alight at the depot at Ntuzuma early on Friday morning. A picture in the Tribune shows the buses absolutely gutted and one doubts if they could ever be repaired. This is not the first time that Remant Alton buses have been set alight, with 59 having been burnt in an attack on the Umlazi depot on April 23, 2006. You would have thought that with that experience, and given the present tense situation, they would have stepped up security at ther depots.
The Mercury, October 6, 2008
The paper reports that commuters are likely to be without buses for another week.
The Mercury, October 7, 2008
A heist at the Riverside Hotel (ex Athlone) netted millions in jewells which were going to be auctioned at the hotel. The robbery took place at 7am on October 6, as the jewells were being moved into the auction area.
I've already noted that two Durban Solid Waste trucks were set alight last Wednesday. Two more were burnt in an attack at 11pm on the DSW depot at Clairwood onOctober, 4. The paper reported that 80% of DSW workers were back on the job and that some collections were being done over the weekend. As noted in an earlier post, our rubbish was collected today in Waterfall.
The Mercury, October 8, 2008
The paper reports Remant Alton as having closed down indefinitely as result of the the three week drivers' strike. Executive officer Paul Rush said that the company was planning to recruit sub-contractors to operate its routes. Now, that should be fine recipe for chaos. And there could be more on the way if strikers go ahead with plans to march through town on Friday, in spite of being refused permission by the city to do so. I find it ironic that a city run by the ANC, an organisation founded to fight for democracy, has no problem denying others the right to protest.
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Sunday Tribune - October 5, 2008.
The paper reports that there are plans to declare the beachfront area a glass-free zone and outlaw public drinking. This is in response to the events described I described here. In addition, on the Friday night, there was a strong police presence and mini-bus taxis and buses were barred from entering the beachfront area. There are apparently also plans to keep a track of where buses and taxis come from in future.
In act assumed to be somehow connected with the bus drivers' strike, 19 buses were set alight at the depot at Ntuzuma early on Friday morning. A picture in the Tribune shows the buses absolutely gutted and one doubts if they could ever be repaired. This is not the first time that Remant Alton buses have been set alight, with 59 having been burnt in an attack on the Umlazi depot on April 23, 2006. You would have thought that with that experience, and given the present tense situation, they would have stepped up security at ther depots.
The Mercury, October 6, 2008
The paper reports that commuters are likely to be without buses for another week.
The Mercury, October 7, 2008
A heist at the Riverside Hotel (ex Athlone) netted millions in jewells which were going to be auctioned at the hotel. The robbery took place at 7am on October 6, as the jewells were being moved into the auction area.
I've already noted that two Durban Solid Waste trucks were set alight last Wednesday. Two more were burnt in an attack at 11pm on the DSW depot at Clairwood onOctober, 4. The paper reported that 80% of DSW workers were back on the job and that some collections were being done over the weekend. As noted in an earlier post, our rubbish was collected today in Waterfall.
The Mercury, October 8, 2008
The paper reports Remant Alton as having closed down indefinitely as result of the the three week drivers' strike. Executive officer Paul Rush said that the company was planning to recruit sub-contractors to operate its routes. Now, that should be fine recipe for chaos. And there could be more on the way if strikers go ahead with plans to march through town on Friday, in spite of being refused permission by the city to do so. I find it ironic that a city run by the ANC, an organisation founded to fight for democracy, has no problem denying others the right to protest.
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What a relief!
The familiar sound of a rubbish truck compacting garbage floated into the complex yesterday. When I left to go to work, a crew was still busy loading the garbage from last week. DSW's return to work caught us on the hop, a bit, because we hadn't taken out this week's bags. Next week for sure.
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Sunday, October 5, 2008
Metro snippets
Metro Esasegagasini, which accompanied The Mercury on October 3, 2008, reported, amongst other things, that:
* A streamlined public transport system which would allow commuters to travel on trains, buses, and taxis on one ticket. There were plenty of comments from politicians but little detail and no dates. One assumes that this would have to happen before the soccer fans arrive in 2010.
* A time capsule has been sealed at the Natural Science Museum and is due to be opened in two stages in 2058 and 2108. It contains an ipod, a cellphone, DVDs and messages from children of today to the children of those eras. From my other research, there is also a capsule built into the foundation of the Millennium Tower. That one contains a brassiere, if memory serves me correctly.
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* A streamlined public transport system which would allow commuters to travel on trains, buses, and taxis on one ticket. There were plenty of comments from politicians but little detail and no dates. One assumes that this would have to happen before the soccer fans arrive in 2010.
* A time capsule has been sealed at the Natural Science Museum and is due to be opened in two stages in 2058 and 2108. It contains an ipod, a cellphone, DVDs and messages from children of today to the children of those eras. From my other research, there is also a capsule built into the foundation of the Millennium Tower. That one contains a brassiere, if memory serves me correctly.
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Waste matters
The Mercury of October 2, 2008, also reported that two Durban Solid Waste trucks were set alight on the previous day in separate incidents.
Those must be the trucks that were on they way to our complex because I see that, onn Sunday, we still have a rubbish Matterhorn outside our gates, which has now received plenty of attention from passersby and dogs.
The strike of DSW workers was inevitable, said Independent Municipal & Allied Trade Union spokesman Dempsey Perumal, due to the fact that the municipality was employing workers through agencies on a long-term basis. Agency staff were paid less than than municipal workers and did not receive any benefits which, said Deputy City Manager Derek Naidoo, saved the municipality a lot of money. The Mercury gives the example of an agency-employed street sweeper earning R1200 a month.
To my mind, there may be an odd occasion when using agency staff is justified but that it is mostly the refuge of organisations out to circumvent racial employment quotas or save money, no matter what the cost to workers. It is a process that is apparently legal but often times not that ethical, and I am genuinely surprised that eThekwini Municipality would stoop that low. This situation is attributable either to deliberate policy or gross inefficiency but I don't suppose we will really ever know.
*** This issue of The Mercury has a page devoted to the street names which were recently changed and who they were originally named after.
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Those must be the trucks that were on they way to our complex because I see that, onn Sunday, we still have a rubbish Matterhorn outside our gates, which has now received plenty of attention from passersby and dogs.
The strike of DSW workers was inevitable, said Independent Municipal & Allied Trade Union spokesman Dempsey Perumal, due to the fact that the municipality was employing workers through agencies on a long-term basis. Agency staff were paid less than than municipal workers and did not receive any benefits which, said Deputy City Manager Derek Naidoo, saved the municipality a lot of money. The Mercury gives the example of an agency-employed street sweeper earning R1200 a month.
To my mind, there may be an odd occasion when using agency staff is justified but that it is mostly the refuge of organisations out to circumvent racial employment quotas or save money, no matter what the cost to workers. It is a process that is apparently legal but often times not that ethical, and I am genuinely surprised that eThekwini Municipality would stoop that low. This situation is attributable either to deliberate policy or gross inefficiency but I don't suppose we will really ever know.
*** This issue of The Mercury has a page devoted to the street names which were recently changed and who they were originally named after.
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Secret audit
The Mercury of October 2, 2008, reports that the eThekwini Municipality has blocked access to an internal audit report (numbered 05287) and that Democratic Alliance Cllr. John Steenhuisen is using the Promotion of Access to Information Act to try and obtain a copy. At issue is a sum of R15-million which the municipality paid to various security companies for work which the security companies did not do but charged for, in error, say the companies. City Treasurer Krish Kumar admitted last year that the city was owed the money and that it is being paid back. It is believed, however, that audit report will show that the companies were let off repaying the money.
The city uses the companies for access control, armed response and for escorting city workers in dangerous areas. The whole issue is confused with contracts having been extended several times, despite new tenders having been issued, at least one ex-city employee now being involved with a security company, and several of the security companies sharing the same addresses and phone numbers. The whole system appears to be very badly organised and for there to be many opportunities for graft and corruption to flourish.
City Manager Mike Sutcliffe is reported as saying that he will not enter into a discussion on the matter. He further said that the report was an 'internal' one and that the municipality did not distribute such 'work in progress'. He said that it would be referred to the executive committee when the work was done. Cllr. Steenhuisen reponded that he had been a member of the committee since 2006 and had never seen such such a report served up to the committee.
The city uses the companies for access control, armed response and for escorting city workers in dangerous areas. The whole issue is confused with contracts having been extended several times, despite new tenders having been issued, at least one ex-city employee now being involved with a security company, and several of the security companies sharing the same addresses and phone numbers. The whole system appears to be very badly organised and for there to be many opportunities for graft and corruption to flourish.
City Manager Mike Sutcliffe is reported as saying that he will not enter into a discussion on the matter. He further said that the report was an 'internal' one and that the municipality did not distribute such 'work in progress'. He said that it would be referred to the executive committee when the work was done. Cllr. Steenhuisen reponded that he had been a member of the committee since 2006 and had never seen such such a report served up to the committee.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
A hell of a fire
The Mercury of October 1, 2008, has a spectacular picture of an articulated trailer full of cooking oil on fire on the N3 near spaghetti junction. The fire apparently happened on Tuesday night and the cause was unknown.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Uh oh, is right
I see that the mini-Matterhorn of rubbish at the gate of our complex is still there. That means that the workers from Durban Solid Waste must still be on strike. Joy!
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