IWOULD like to express my immense gratitude for this honour that has been bestowed on me, which is not one I take lightly. As the new Mayor of eThekwini, I pledge not to fail the residents of this beautiful City. A huge thanks goes to my predecessor, former Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda, who had been in this position since 2019. I want to wish him well as he assumes his new responsibilities. He laid a solid foundation on which we will continue working closely with community leaders, business and all stakeholders to create solutions that reflect our collective aspirations.

Our City has a vibrant and dynamic community, rich in diversity and full of potential. It is a place where different cultures, ideas and dreams come together like bright rainbow colours to create a thriving environment. Working as a collective, I commit to nurture this diversity and harness our collective strengths to build a more inclusive future that no one must feel left out. Working collectively, we will review areas that have not performed well and implement new approaches, and in the process enhance transparency and improve accountability, to ensure effective and efficient service delivery.

To that end, we will also ensure that those entrusted with the responsibilities are responsive and more accountable. Our priorities are clear. To name but a few, we will focus on:
• Improving water and sanitation infrastructure as well as ensuring uninterrupted water supply;
• A safe and clean City; 
• Inner-city rejuve nation;
• Strengthening good governance and fighting corruption;
• Attracting investment and promoting an inclusive economy hat creates jobs. 

We want to appeal to the employees of the Municipality to recommit themselves to serve the public with integrity, honour, and humility in line with the Batho Pele Principles. We must state unequivocally that we will not tolerate people who do not want to work and those who pursue their self-interests at the expense of the people of eThekwini. We will monitor performance of senior management to ensure that it is aligned to the objectives and key performance indicators that underpin our IDP. We commit to continue to work with all institutions that are charged with the responsibility of enforcing good governance such as the Auditor-General, Treasury, and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs. We welcome the support that we are currently receiving from the provincial and national government through Section 154. It is important to state that the City has been supported on an ongoing basis in various areas including, among many, the Presidential Working Group which provides support on seven workstreams which include, among others, disaster management and governance.