Publications
Partners
Mayor Parks Tau identifies himself as an activist first, and his vision for the city of the future is one that is inclusive and accountable
In recent weeks, Johannesburg mayor Parks Tau has had to fiercely defend the installation of bicycle lanes around the city.
But if anyone is hoping that the dissenting voices will have their way, they may as well and pack their bags – it’s not going to happen.
Tau has a plan to “provide access to people who don’t have access to services, to replenish ageing infrastructure and to invest in a city of the future”, he says. And the bicycle lanes are part of the city’s future.
He hardly pauses for a breath as he eagerly delves into his vision for the City of Johannesburg.
“We have moved beyond discussing the number of houses we have built, we are the leading city in that regard. We now talk about where they are. Where are you building houses that create inclusivity? How do you build transport networks that make facilities and amenities accessible to the people of Johannesburg?
“Cities are about how they interface with their users, and Johannesburg has set out to be a city that interfaces in an inclusive way, whether it is about where you are located, how you access your city or how you hold the city accountable.”
His passion for his job cannot be called into question. It is hard to imagine that he was reluctant to take on the job of mayor in 2011.
“I was kind of saying, ‘but you have been a councillor for so long [20 years], don’t you want to do something else?’ Not outside the ANC, not outside government, but maybe move outside the city.”
That sentiment has since changed. And, much to his relief, the ANC gave him the official nod last week to lead the city with a population of about 4 million people yet again.
When asked to describe himself outside of the ANC, he is stumped. Pausing for a long time, he then gives a slow, embarrassed laugh.
“I hardly ever talk ‘me’, so it is uncomfortable. I am an activist, I grew up as an activist. I grew up in the struggle, so it was a natural evolution. In many ways, it continues to inform the way I participate in both the ANC and government.
“There are issues that I champion both in the city and on international platforms, ranging from environmental justice and sustainability to issues about building and creating inclusive cities,” he says slowly, thinking it through.
“But, primarily, I see myself as an activist,” he reiterates before pausing, speechless again.
At the launch of the results of the Quality of Life Survey last week, Tau welcomed the indication that Johannesburg was performing just above the average.
He also expressed concerns at the staggering 43% of residents in the province – represented by the 30 000 who had participated in the survey – who expressed that influx control should be brought back to the city.
“As a city, you grow and prosper on the back of urbanisation. We are likely to prosper more by being an attractive city than by being a city that repels.
Cities that repel don’t prosper because they exclude themselves,” he says, excited to be back on a more official subject.
Tau says that some see urbanisation as having to compete for resources, but he doesn’t agree.
“People who come to cities contribute to social and economic well-being and the cities’ development, notwithstanding the pressures.
“It also means, given the rapid growth, that we are forever chasing a moving target.
But we have committed to invest in excess of R100 billion over 10 years, leveraging our own balance sheet and looking at innovative financing solutions to be able to increase our expenditure, as well as attract expenditure from the private sector and mobilise international resources that come into our city so that we are able to deal with those problems.”
He is back in “future-city mode” and it is difficult to keep up. I keep thinking about the four separate traffic lights that weren’t working on the way here and if there will be time to get around to fixing them amid all these big ideas.
I ask him to briefly sum up his vision for the city in his home language, Setswana. He laughs nervously, pauses and asks his spokesperson: “What is ‘inclusivity’ again in Setswana?”
Then he says: “Ke toropo ya batho botlhe eleng gore o mong le o mong o nna le monyetla wa go gola, agodise bana bagage, abane le monyetla wa mosebetsi le thuto. [An inclusive city where everyone has the opportunity to grow and raise their children with opportunities for job creation and education.]”
Then he is back to speaking in highbrow terms. When asked whether he and the residents of Johannesburg are on the same page, he admits: “We have work to do from a communication point of view.”
In a hotly contested election where Johannesburg is a blue-ribbon prize, can he steer his party to victory and retain the metro?
“We are on the ground and we have been engaging [with residents], so we are very confident of a victory in Johannesburg.
“We are not complacent and we are humble, but our track record, our delivery performance throughout Johannesburg – whether you go to suburbia, whether you go to the townships, or informal settlements – speaks for itself.”
TALK TO US
What can be done to make Johannesburg a better city?
SMS us on 35697 using the keyword VISION and tell us what you think. Please include your name and province. SMSes cost R1.50
