CITY OF CAPE TOWN
28 OCTOBER 2015
SPEECH BY THE CITY’S EXECUTIVE MAYOR, PATRICIA DE LILLE, AT THE
FULL COUNCIL MEETING ON 28 OCTOBER 2015
Mr Speaker,
Good morning, goeie môre, molweni, as-salaam alaikum, shalom.
History is a dialogue of change over time.
It is a living chronicle of actions and deeds, people and individuals, ideas and
philosophies, hopes and fears, failures and triumphs.
Our past is memory and understanding, forgetting and remembering.
It is wrapped up in the present and future, unfolding with them over time.
Creating the future is an act of the present using the past that lives within and
with us.
While the texture of that which lies before us is made by so many different
people and events, it can be shaped by the actions of a few individuals and
how we choose to give them significance in the stories we tell and in the
histories we share.
In the testament of South Africa, few individuals meet the requirements of
shaping history as much as Archbishop Tutu.
For decades, he assumed a leadership role in a country governed by a
regime that did everything in its power to stamp out our leaders.
His voice was the expression of a rage that could and would not die – a fight
against injustice and a crime against humanity.
For millions of people, he provided hope in a place of indignity, violence, and
fear.
We were not another country then.
We were the same South Africa that we are today, though we have
mercifully changed in some fundamental ways, not least in the achievement
of freedom in a democracy.
In too many ways, we have not changed at all.
For me, this is the Archbishop’s enduring lesson: the process of change, the
transition from a fractured society to a unified polity, takes time.
And one of the critical tools of that change in a divided South Africa is
reconciliation.
He taught us that reconciliation is not an event. It is the lived and daily
undertaking of generations.
In the years before our democracy, Archbishop Tutu provided a space for
change through dialogue and a rejection of the apartheid system.
He put himself on the frontlines against a ruthless and brutalising state.
He provided a space for activists using the refuge of St George’s Cathedral.
And he shone light on the dark places of our country.
During the first crucial years of democracy, he chaired the Truth and
Reconciliation Commission – a significant landmark in the long journey of
dealing with apartheid’s numerous crimes and legacies.
Despite retirement, he has remained a fixture in our national consciousness.
He has continued to fight injustice wherever it occurs, focused on the goal of
building a united and reconciled society.
Cape Town has already offered Archbishop Tutu the Freedom of the City.
But we would like to build on that accolade and honour him in his lifetime.
I would like to commit this Council to govern according to the principles that
the Arch continues to champion: the relentless pursuit of reconciliation for a
more just and united society; and a commitment to the fight for dignity and
fairness in creating a more peaceful world.
These are noble and lofty ideals.
But they provide us with a compass point towards which we should direct all
of our efforts.
In this regard, the work of our public policy is essential in addressing the
wrongs of the past and building a better Cape Town.
This imperative is expressed in the way we have chosen to provide ceilings to
thousands of homes that have gone without.
Between 1994 and 2005, the majority of State-subsidised housing units were
constructed without insulated ceilings and weather-proofing.
This was because the subsidy provided by the ANC National Government at
the time did not make provision for the installation of ceilings.
There are currently 40 000 RDP subsidy houses in the city without ceilings and
weather-proofing.
We decided to intervene.
The initial pilot project was implemented in Mamre, where 260 ceilings were
installed. Other pilots were conducted in Kuyasa and Khayelitsha.
Through City funding and capital raised from the Green Fund, our retrofitting
programme will be rolled out to all 40 000 at a cost of R400 million.
Phase One of the programme is currently under way in Eureka Estate, where
250 units will be retrofitted at a cost of R4,1 million.
Since the beginning of this month, more than 80 units have already been
completed.
It is estimated that the entire project of 8 000 ceiling retrofits will create
around 800 job opportunities through the Expanded Public Works Programme
(EPWP).
This week, the retrofitting programme will also start in Kalkfontein (300 units),
Lwandle (400), Vrygrond (1 600) and Wesbank (1 000).
This phase is set to be completed between February and May 2016.
This government effort will improve the lives of thousands of residents, while
helping us fulfil our commitment to being a caring city.
Mr Speaker, in terms of being a caring city, I am also pleased to report that
due to rates rebates – a critical component of our policy framework – the
City benefitted individuals to the amount of R1,1 billion in the previous
financial year.
That is a significant amount of money that we waived in order to let those
who are under financial strain, the elderly and the disabled, and the general
economy benefit.
Nothing demonstrates a government’s pledge to fighting poverty and
helping those most in need more, than providing comprehensive tax relief.
By helping residents to the tune of more than R1 billion, we are doing our part
to foster social inclusion and build a better and more just Cape Town.
While the ANC National Government, through the Treasury, may think we are
too generous with the poor, we remain committed to cross-subsidising the
poor, especially in the light of the National Government’s mismanagement of
the economy.
But our economic contributions towards redress do not stop at direct
measures of household tax relief.
Indeed, we have built in codes of redress and reconciliation into the very
way we transact our business through our procurement system.
As such, I am pleased to announce that in the previous financial year, our
BBBEE suppliers constituted 80,27% of the service providers used.
In terms of addressing historic disadvantage through broad measures of
redress that create opportunity, we are playing our part by using innovate
ways to encourage diverse enterprises, especially job-creating small and
medium size businesses, to become our partners in building this city.
Mr Speaker, part of living Archbishop Tutu’s legacy is to ensure that we are
always a responsive and listening government, one that adapts our policies
and programmes in consultation with our residents.
In this regard, I am pleased to present our proposal for the Clifton
Development Precinct after our process of public consultation.
On 29 May 2015, the City’s Council agreed to the in-principle sale and the
granting of rights to use, control and manage (lease) certain portions of Cityowned land which forms part of the area known as the Clifton Development
Precinct, comprising portions of four City-owned erven, stretching from Clifton
to Camps Bay.
Subsequently, the City undertook a further extensive public engagement
process.
Constructive engagements about the City’s vision for this important precinct
have been held, with a focus on garnering as much input from members of
the public and interested and affected parties as possible.
We have listened carefully to the public input and have decided to adapt
the development vision quite substantially as a result of the public
participation processes.
I therefore ask Council to note the extensive public participation processes
conducted by the administration between 22 January and 2 April 2015, and
also the additional public participation process between 2 June and 5
October 2015 regarding Council’s intention to sell and grant rights to use,
control and manage (lease) the ‘subject properties’ within the Clifton
precinct.
In addition, the Council should note and consider approving the following
proposed changes to the design vision that have been brought subsequent
to the additional public participation, which include:
 that the existing space at the beach recreational node at Maiden’s
Cove be expanded to include portions of the sports field currently
leased from the City by Camps Bay High School in order to create the
opportunity for a multi-use beach recreational node, thereby
maximising the public value of the site
 that a related public participation process be initiated, focusing on
upgrading and redeveloping the existing sports fields in Camps Bay for
shared future use by the Camps Bay High School and the current users
 the establishment of a residential component on the current parking
area to the entrance of Maiden’s Cove
 that as a further response to the public request for inclusionary housing
and improved community integration, a special fund be established by
the City whereby a portion of the sale/lease proceeds paid by
developers will be pooled to fund near inner-city inclusionary housing
projects
 that the developer of the subject properties will be required to
contribute to certain upgrades within the area including the current
pedestrian access routes (steps) to Clifton’s Fourth Beach, the Clifton
Caves cantilever boardwalk proposal, as well as improvement within
the beach area
Mr Speaker, I request that this Council reaffirm the in-principle approval
granted on 29 May 2015, to proceed with the sale and the granting of rights
to use, control and manage (lease) the ‘subject properties’ by way of a
competitive tender process.
The successful tenderer will be required to develop the detailed proposals
and obtain all the statutory approvals (such as heritage impact,
environmental authorisation and rezoning) that are required.
That stage in the process will afford the public extensive opportunity to
comment on the precise development proposals.
Our design vision, amongst others, includes connecting the Maiden’s Cove
area with a walkway (elevated in sections to help to protect the endangered
Cape Flats Dune Strandveld vegetation) stretching from Sea Point, thereby
enhancing access to this area.
We would like to see that the portions of land in question could ultimately be
managed as sustainable assets for the future generations of Cape Town by
the City and the private sector.
This includes the potential development of residential opportunities, an
underground parking garage, retail facilities, and uses ancillary to these
facilities as well as the redevelopment and relocation of sports facilities.
We have considered all of the aspects that have been raised and we are
confident that the revised design vision speaks to some of the inputs that
have been made.
If this approach is agreed to by Council, the City will balance the input and
interests that have been made and then report back in some form on how
this array of views was considered.
If approved, our highly skilled internal property development experts will now
start to look at the nuts and bolts of our vision to see how the design vision
can be implemented in the future.
It is important to remember that these proposed changes, if approved, and
after all processes have been completed, will open up the whole area from
Green Point to Camps Bay with a walkway.
This will make the whole area accessible to everyone in Cape Town, rich or
poor, while generally adding value to the area.
Mr Speaker, history does not stand still.
While we may live with great moments that act as signal points across the
landscape of our past, the process of change and building the future with
the past is a daily, dynamic process.
In recent times, we have seen popular forces hungry for social change and
justice find a new energy.
It is our duty to match that energy by ensuring that our actions and decisions
work towards building a society of dignity, fuelled by a real commitment to
reconciliation.
In so doing, we will give life to the values that Archbishop Tutu has fought for
and lives by.
Thinking of this sentiment, and in honour of the Arch, I leave you all with this
quotation from the Book of John, Chapter 1, verse 5: ‘The light shines in the
darkness and the darkness has not overcome it’.
For the Arch, in the endeavour to build a better country, each individual can
play their part, no matter how small.
Thank you, baie dankie, enkosi.
End
Issued by: Media Office, City of Cape Town
Media enquiries: Zara Nicholson, Spokesperson for the Executive Mayor –
Patricia de Lille, City of Cape Town, Tel: 021 400 4998 or Cell: 079 416 5996, Email: zara.nicholson@capetown.gov.za