New Mayor commits to serving Stellenbosch communities
Executive Mayor, Adv. Gesie van Deventer, re-elected Mayor for Stellenbosch, pledged her allegiance to the town and its people in her inaugural speech earlier this week.
During the speech she quoted thew words of US president Theodore Roosevelt who said in his inauguration speech – “Much has been given to us, and much will rightfully be expected from us.”
“I will continue to work tirelessly to further my dream of creating opportunities for every resident of Stellenbosch. Every person in the greater Stellenbosch should be given the opportunity to better his or her live,” she said.
She also undertook to create the framework, but it will always be the prerogative of the individual to use that opportunity. Some of the elements to achieve this dream, all equally important will be:
- Clean, accountable, and responsive government with zero tolerance for corruption and illegal actions.
- Rekindling the local economy following the aftermath of the Covid-19 disaster
- Excellent service delivery for all areas within the greater Stellenbosch.
- Ridding the town of the devastating effects of load shedding.
- Housing for residents in all categories
- Implementation of the Adam Tas corridor which is regarded as a showcase
- Greater community safety
- Planning systems and procedures will be streamlined to facilitate desirable growth
- The burning issue of transfer of land to new famers will be a priority.
Van Deventer said she will continue to serve all Stellenbosch residents with dedication, commitment, and fairness, whether they voted for her or not.
“The election is a process to decide who are elected to Council, and now that the election is over, we need to start working together. From this day forward, we are councillors, mandated by our residents to serve their interests. Therefore, I want to start off by inviting all elected to serve with me with one single purpose: the best interest of our residents.
“The result (of the election) is a very diverse council, diverse in politics, culture and age. This will make us rich in diversity and able to better deliver for all our residents. In a time where we see young people are hesitant to participate in politics and hesitant to vote, we are particularly proud to have young, energetic councillors.
“I also want to thank every volunteer, every public representative, councillor, the IEC and all our own staff members that worked so hard to fulfil the promise of our democracy,” she said.