Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to announce major reforms to the management of Ports, Passenger Rail, and Policing during this week’s State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Three critical reforms top Cape Town’s advocacy agenda for the Government of National Unity:
∙ Greater private sector involvement in running the Port of Cape Town
∙ More policing powers for municipal officers to help SAPS fight gang, gun, and drug crime
∙ Devolving Cape Town’s passenger rail operations for the City to run
‘We can generate huge economic benefits in our region by fixing Cape Town’s port, passenger rail, and policing. The Government of National Unity (GNU) has a golden chance to drive job-creating reforms this year, and we’ll be closely watching President Ramaphosa’s SONA for news on these fronts.
‘Cape Town’s port is ranked worst in the world for efficiency, and there’s no doubt private sector partners could turn this around. An efficient port will raise exports of local products and drive job creation in these industries. We were disappointed that our port is not among a batch of Transnet projects up for private sector investment injections by June this year. We need a clear and urgent deadline for greater private sector involvement in Cape Town’s port operations,’ said Mayor Hill-Lewis.
On policing, Mayor Hill-Lewis said the City was calling for the devolution of criminal investigative powers so that officers can help build prosecution-ready case dockets, and gain convictions particularly for gang, gun, drug and extortion-related crime.
‘This immediate boost for the State’s criminal investigation capacity can be achieved by the Police Minister issuing regulations under the SAPS Act. We are also calling for the upcoming batch of SAPS Act amendments to include a change to section 64E(c) empowering municipal officers to investigate crime. We can take far more guns and drugs off the streets – and gain convictions – if we are able to offer more help to SAPS investigations and prosecutors.
On passenger rail, the City is calling for a clear deadline on devolving the train service for capable metros to run. Cape Town is set to have complete business plans in place by mid-2025 to take over the management of passenger rail services following the City’s completion of a Rail Feasibility Study last year.
‘This year, Cape Town will be ready to take over running of passenger rail, with complete business plans in place. We await the President’s update on the status of the long-delayed National Devolution Strategy. Taking charge of Metrorail is especially urgent for lower income households, who would save an estimated R932m a year if trains were working as they should. We have a vision to massively scale up passenger numbers, new train sets, new routes, and to upgrade stations and surrounding areas with affordable housing over the next two decades,’ said Mayor Hill-Lewis.
