Gauteng Exco visits Orange Farm as part of Ntirhisano Outreach programme

As part of the Ntirhisano Outreach Programme, Premier David Makhura together with Members of the Executive Council (MECs) visited Orange Farm, Johannesburg to assess progress made in delivering government services to the community.

 

Premier Makhura and MECs visited service delivery points and checked on the progress of housing construction in Orange Farm Ext 2, 7 and 8 as part of government’s on-going engagements with the community.

 

The Ntirhisano Community Outreach programme provides a platform for government in the Gauteng City Region to engage with residents and unlock service delivery issues.

 

Premier Makhura visited the Drieziek Library which has been completed and will officially open its doors on 1 September.

 

The state of the art library has a designated children’s area and upon completion will be serviced by about 10 staff members.

 

At the Orange Farm Clinic in extension 7, Premier Makhura interacted with patients and staff who raised concerns about the limited space available at the clinic which serves more than 30 000 people. Although there are already five clinics in the area, government will consider the expansion of healthcare services.

 

The Orange Farm community is also plagued by the scourge of drugs and crime.  While the Orange Farm Police station is under resourced, Premier Makhura said it was very important for the police to turn the tide against crime in the area.

 

“We will come back here and we won’t be looking for explanations, we will be looking for results. The crime rate in this area must drop and things need to be improved.” Premier said.

 

At the Siyakhula Children’s home, the Premier commended the staff for doing their share for vulnerable children.

 

“As government, we encourage community members to come up with solutions and we can then come and support them once they start projects to benefit their communities.” Premier said 

Gauteng Human Settlements MEC Paul Mashatile inspected the progress of houses under construction for handover tomorrow in Drieziek Ext 4.  The Gauteng Government is building 1000 houses in the Orange farm area.

 

While Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport, Ismail Vadi, visited the new Blue Taxi Rank, he also revealed plans to further improve public transport infrastructure in the area.

 

The site visits were followed by a public meeting at the Orange Farm Multi-Purpose Centre where Premier and Members of the Executive Council engaged directly with the people of Orange Farm.