LETTER: Many women and men in ANC can do better job than Mzwandile Masina

We who continue to electorally support the ANC are disappointed to hear transport minister Fikile “Mbaks” Mbalula lionise Ekurhuleni mayor Mzwandile Masina as the best-performing mayor in the country. The reality is that he is not. I live in Ekurhuleni and fundamentally disagree with the minister’s assertion.

If Mbalula lived in my area the would know Masina’s administration is running down the metro. I live in Benoni, and have watched this once beautiful city crumble under the weight of debris and neglect, as are so many other towns in the area. Mkhukhus or shacks and informal settlements literally mushroom every day in every square metre of the area’s surface.

The communities of Thokoza and Katlehong go to bed in darkness because power has been switched off. Days upon days, this has become a regular feature of our life. Come to Ekurhuleni and see the R1.9bn toilet tender scandal that “stinks to high heaven”.

This, surely, is not something Mbalula wants the citizens of Ekurhuleni to be pleased about. He probably does not see it because of the comfort of his position, the salary and perks he draws every month that insulate him from the squalor some of us have to put up with every day of our lives.

I am an Anglican priest in Thokoza and do pastoral work there and in other black townships in the area. I see every day the pain in the eyes of people living in the communities in areas Mbalula thinks are the best run. They are not; these places are an affront to humanity and tragedy to the people who voted for the ANC truly believing it would rescue them from the squalor our cities and towns have become.

There are many good women and men in the ANC who could do a better job than Masina. We must find them and use their expertise to turn cities and towns into a flurry of economic activity. They are young and bright, brimming with ideas.

Jo-Mangaliso Mdhlela, Via email

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