OPINION:
Dear Mr President,
The leadership void in eThekwini is affecting our city, province and country.
The Durban area is the prime tourist beach and sea-bathing area of the country. A senior provincial official has warned me that eThekwini is likely to lose one of its two Blue Flag beaches. This is because our sea water quality does not meet international standards.
Our rivers and watercourses are polluted, often with high concentrations of sewage, caused by poor maintenance at our sewer works, a lack of supervision of ablution facilities at our informal settlements, and little control over building additions/alterations which are connected to stormwater (by mistake or deliberately).
I’m furious. So many people have come together to promote and look after our beaches. Tourism is our lifeblood. It creates so many jobs in eThekwini and beyond. Most people take care of our beaches. They keep their dogs away from the designated areas. They don’t braai, and they don’t fish there either.
What does our city leadership do? They seem to be more worried about keeping their jobs than looking after this natural asset.
Mr President, please fix eThekwini. There is not much point in trying to attract foreign investment to South Africa if our main tourism city is not functioning. Fix South Africa first, and start with eThekwini.
Geoff Pullan DA Councillor
Daily News