Kunene declares war on corruption and calls for protection of whistle-blowers

By: Sello Theletsane

New City of Johannesburg Member of Mayoral Committee (MMC) for Roads and Transport Kenny Kunene has laid bare how deeply-entrenched corruption and unscrupulous contractors are inhibiting the City from fully discharging its mandate of rendering quality services to residents.

Kunene also called for protection of whistle-blowers who he said played a vital role in exposing corruption. “People are now scared to come forward and expose corruption because many are being harassed, with some even getting killed for doing the right thing of blowing the whistle against corruption. We have to do more to ensure that whistle-blowers get the protection they need if we are to succeed in our battle to defeat corruption,” said Kunene.

Kunene was speaking at a media briefing in Joburg on Wednesday where he highlighted the status of his department and its entities’ including Metrobus, Rea Vaya and Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA).

“Some officials are being bribed by unscrupulous companies who render sub-standard work, and no one is being held accountable. We are going to keep the city’s Group Forensics and Investigation Services (GFIS) very busy. Officials must be held for their actions. We cannot allow substandard work to continue and officials getting away with it,” Kunene said.

The MMC cited an asphalt plant which he said the City had spent R60m to purchase but was currently not operational. The plant was bought to improve the JRA’s ability to respond to pothole repairs and the surfacing of roads within the city. The plant can also produce cold, warm and hot mixes of asphalt; which increases the ability of the JRA maintenance teams to respond quicker to asphalt service defects. Kunene said the plant also had the capacity to recycle old asphalt. He said the plant was a valuable asset that could be used to generate much-needed revenue for the city as it could sell excess asphalt it produces to other municipalities and private companies.

Kunene said ongoing court battle and corruption were some of the challenges bedevelling the plant. He added that some officials don’t want the plant to work so that private companies could be brought on board to supply asphalt at exorbitant prices.

“This must stop. I’ve asked the board to look into this. We are going to get that plant up and running as a matter of urgency.”

Kunene spoke at length about the city’s crubling road infrastructure which he estimated would need about R37-bn to fix. “Our problem is much bigger than potholes. Our road infrastructure is old. We have about 14 000 km road network in the City.”

Kunene said the City also managed roads and thousands of traffic signals “which we manage in conjunction with the province and the South African National Roads Agency (SANRAL)”.

“Sadly, when people complain, their complaints are always directed at the City, however truth is some of these roads, and traffic signals are managed by the provincial government.” Kunene said vandalism of traffic signals and other infrastructure by criminals and road users was another challenge.” Regrettably, road users and criminals are seldom held accountable for their actions. We are engaging the City to find out if we can change by-laws to hold people accountable as vandalism of our road infrastructure is costing us a fortune.”

Kunene said to revitalise the City’s road infrastructure, an amount of about R37-bn was needed. “The JRA is trying to follow a structured approach to road management and visual condition assessments (VCA) informs the response plan that prioritises the preservation of existing road infrastructure, keeping it in good condition and not allowing it to deteriorate to a poor condition.”

Kunene said JRA’s response plan included proactive maintenance, including pothole repairs and crack sealing as well as roads resurfacing. “We need to move beyond potholes and invest in road maintenance, rehabilitation and reconstruction,” said Kunene. He also outlined how his department planned to tackle the challenge posed by unreliable power supply and load-shedding which affects the working of traffic signals and leads to congestion on the roads.

“It’s disgrace that homeless people directing traffic at busy traffic traffic intersections during this load-shedding. This is embarrassing. We have engaged the private sector to help us get trained personnel to assist direct traffic. I’m happy to announce that there are already companies that have volunteered to assist.”

Kunene said until a more permanent power source was secured, “JRA will be entering into partnerships with corporates to assist us by connecting traffic light intersections to their buildings that have back up power supply during load shedding.” Kunene said over the next six months, JRA would be piloting 50 intersections city-wide with the aim of expanding this initiative. Kunene called on companies interested in partnering with his department to keep the City’s traffic lights on to contact his department.

Added Kunene: “Our teams are ready to implement smart technology for improved remote monitoring, fault reporting and repairs, as well as intelligent traffic flow prioritisation for movement of public transport during peak hours and reduced travelling times. These interventions are intended to respond to the Mayoral priority of a Smart City.”