THE ANC Frank Marquard Branch of Ward 22 in Paarl East would like to thank the former executive mayor of Drakenstein, Charmaine Manuel, for the great leadership and integrity she displayed whilst mayor during a coalition ANC-led council from 2006 to May 2011.
When Manuel took over the reins as mayor in Drakenstein, the ANC-led council was faced with many challenges and Manuel embarked on strategies to improve Local Government services, to improve the lives of the poor.
Although much must still be done to address the huge backlogs, Manuel and her council committed themselves to priorities such as rural development, education, creation of decent jobs, housing, crime prevention and every year adopted a pro-poor budget for Drakenstein.
In her final budget speech, she emphasised that the council had made provision in the 2011/2012 budget for several projects to be developed and completed.
These include completion of the Multi-Purpose Khutsong Centre in Paarl East, building a community hall in Groenheuwel, upgrading of existing buildings at the New Orleans Sports field, building houses in Drommedaris, starting the GAP housing initiative in Paarl, processing of housing applications for back-yarders, expansion of the CCTV camera project in conjunction with the SAPS and Community Police Forums.
Before her term as mayor of Drakenstein came to an end, Manuel paved the way for the new council to continue with the development in projects in areas where necessary and most needed.
The ANC Frank Marquard Branch is proud to have benefitted from the great leadership of an ANC mayor in Drakenstein over the past five years. We hope that the current mayor will build on the foundation that was laid to build a better life for all people. The struggle continues...
ANC Frank Marquard Branch (Ward 22 Paarl East)
