Polokwane quest for metro status: City attains Grade 6, executive mayor John Mpe speaks about questions still to be answered

LIMPOPO’s Polokwane municipality is now a Grade 6 entity for its hard-fought ability to collect more than R2,5 billion in revenue each year – for now a positive step to attaining a full metropolitan status.

Though the newly-found status was welcomed and celebrated, executive mayor, John Mpe, remained all too aware that the achievement may be hollow if it does not “build Polokwane that can bring bread on the table of its residents”.

It was from this understanding that Mpe, at the two day municipality’s strategic planning session, drove home a point that the entity still faces challenges of job creation, water and sanitation provision, and road infrastructure, amongst others.

He made it known that that the quest for a full attainment of a metropolitan status will depend on the efficiency of the municipality.

“We have one leg in to reach the metro status. It’s an indication of hard work. However, our celebration tells us that as much as you can have much-needed revenue, and you can generate more and more revenue, the question remains; how do you use the revenue that you have earned?

“The question that also comes is whether we can afford the [Grade 6] grading or not. Now, it’s no longer being effective, but being efficient,” Mpe said.

It may therefore be a given that the efficiency will be tested by the ability to immediately address the most pressing issues that have been bedevilling the municipality for the past 10 years, such as the persistent daily 40 mega litres water deficit.

Mpe knows it well that guaranteed supply of clean and quality water, and well maintained road infrastructure, amongst others, would retain current investors and attract more for the benefit of the programmes of economic growth and job creation.

At some stage in the past, he and former premier, Chupu Mathabatha, had to give guarantees of water supply to some companies such as Coca-Cola and South African Breweries (SAB).

It would have been a devastating blow to job creation programme because many more companies would have followed suit.

Mpe emphasised that the efficiency of the municipality would have to be shown by the employees of the entity – creating a corrupt-free environment, tighten financial controls, address audit findings and get rid of wastage of resources.

“We’ve taken stock of our current situation and embraced a need for change – a need to change direction. We are called upon to cast bad habits and embrace a new way of doing this.

“We have agreed that our overtime expenditure is excessive beyond justification. We can save and invest more on infrastructure backlogs that we have and attract investors to our city.

“No project will be approved without a budget – moreover our budget must speak to our IDP [Integrated Developmet Plan],” he said.

He believes the growth of Polokwane has the potential to shape the economy of the entire southern African region. He envisaged the repositioning of the local airport to make it a logistical hub in the SADC region.

As the city embarks on a quest to attain full metro status, Mpe said the move would not exclude villages and townships.

“Our vision for a metro must not be taken to mean that our villages and townships will left out. It does not mean that everyone must come and stay in the city,” he said.