1. HON. MEC, the portfolio committee’s Enviroserv oversight visit proved to an eye-opening fact-finder.
2. The Minority Front still awaits the Toxicology Report and Health Risk Assessment promised by the 10^th April. My concern remains the reduction to pH 6 from 9 and the dispersion of foul smelling sulphates in the Shongweni and surrounding areas, which affected N3 motorists and surrounding areas.
3. Of interest HON. Members, is that Enviroserv plans to be 51% black owned by 2019 but HON. MEC ensure that immediately in their 11 Point Plan must be budgets for clean technology, separate from infrastructure allocations.
4. The greatest impact of weakly or unregulated landfills is on peoples’ health which can range from typhoid, cholera, malaria and encephalitis.
5. Studies have shown possible increased risks of certain types of cancer, including bladder, brain and leukaemia, among people who live near landfills.
6. HON.MEC, Economic Development and Local Government must do oversight on Waste Picker Cooperative funded by COGTA in KZN to prevent similar problems.
7. The MF’s concern is that landfill sites are operated by the municipalities, this one by Ethekweni. What oversight do councillors and officials play?
8. We must review site selection as there are a number of disposal facilities inappropriately sited, eg. the Bisasar waste site situated close to an informal settlement. Also there are many unregistered waste disposal sites in the province with security problems created by site pickers who are at risk.
9. HON. Members, currently in KZN there are 49 permitted and 48 unpermitted sites. Hon. MECs’, please deal with the growing problem of landfill sites.
10. Overall HON. MEC, the MF recommends that for economic development, we require a cluster of key thinkers to plan radical economic transformation with inclusive growth as the cornerstone but HON. Premier the time has come to deindustrialise in terms of imposed multinationals and re-industrialise with home-grown indigenous companies.
11. HON. MEC the MF supports this budget of R2.784 billion.
12. Thank you.

Shameen Thakur-Rajbansi

Minority Front  MPL KZN Legislature