Water challenges plaguing Makhanda residents will be discussed when a team of premiers and mayors meets this week to deal with the crisis.
Speaking on the sidelines of a Freedom Day event in Alexandria on Monday, premier Oscar Mabuyane said the team was appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Mabuyane said he had also issued an instruction for station commanders in Nelson Mandela Bay to be more actively involved in operations to fight crime.
However, he said despite these issues, the province was in a much better space than 32 years ago.
But he acknowledged joblessness was among the challenges that needed to be confronted.
Addressing supporters at the Derick Mbele Stadium, Mabuyane said that 32 years ago, millions of South Africans stepped into the light of freedom, not only to vote but to claim their dignity.
“Today marks a defining moment in that ongoing journey; a moment to reflect on how far we’ve come, and to recommit ourselves to building a society founded on equality, justice and a shared prosperity.
“The 32nd commemoration of our freedom and liberation is not only a milestone; it’s a reaffirmation of a collective national project to build a non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous SA.”
He said they were commemorating Freedom Day this year under the theme, “Freedom and the Rule of Law: Thirty Years of Democratic Citizenship”.
“This theme reminds us that freedom is sustained not by slogans, but by institutions, laws and active citizenship.
“In any progressive society, the rule of law is not optional, it is sacrosanct. As we celebrate, we must also be vigilant.
“Our 32-year democratic dispensation is under attack from narratives sympathetic to apartheid-era thinking.”
He said the consequences of apartheid remained through deep inequality, spatial injustice and structural unemployment.
“It’s regrettable that individuals of global influence, like Elon Musk, have misrepresented SA.
“Claims of a so-called ‘genocide’ are false and dangerous. The truth is, SA has a crime problem, and that crime disproportionately affects black and poor communities most.
“If you claim affinity to SA, we call on you, particularly if you have the means, to rather aid in the success of the democratic project, social stability and cohesion by investing in the economy to create jobs and build industries.
“Otherwise, allow South Africans to solve South African challenges.”
Mabuyane said freedom also had to be measured in development outcomes.
He said in the Sarah Baartman district, catalytic projects were being driven to transform the region.
These included the Thyspunt Nuclear Development project.
Another was strategic investment by the SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) in improving key economic corridors, including the critical route connecting the coast through Joubertina into the Karoo, unlocking rural economies.
“Together with Sanral, we’re investing over R740m, with particular focus on the R62 with improvements between Joubertina and Kareedouw.
“This work has so far generated 450 jobs for locals.
“We are also undertaking a special maintenance project focused on road upgrades to improve safety and travel efficiency in the Koukamma Local Municipality.”
According to Mabuyane, ongoing housing delivery and rectification projects were restoring dignity to the people.
“Our coastline positions us at the forefront of the oceans economy with opportunities in aquaculture, marine services and coastal tourism.
“At the same time, the Eastern Cape is leading SA’s energy transition.
“We host some of the country’s largest wind energy investments, worth billions, including the Jeffreys Bay Wind Farm.
“We also boast the Kouga, Cookhouse and Waainek Wind Farms.
“Here in Alexandria, we’re working with development agencies to revive idle industrial infrastructure, including previously closed factories, to stimulate local production and employment.
“This is how we rebuild local economies from the ground up.”
He said they were aware of the challenges in Ndlambe, with water supply interruptions, housing backlogs, sanitation constraints, youth unemployment and limited healthcare access.
However, the government was responding through water and road infrastructure upgrades, housing rectification projects, sewer and sanitation improvements and electrification.
“Despite the many challenges, we’re making progress. Political freedom cannot be separated from genuine inclusive economic participation and growth.
“In this regard, we are supporting smallholder farmers, women in agriculture and rural enterprises.
“While economic prosperity is central to sustained development, no freedom can exist where women and children live in fear.
“We’re calling on everyone to take a stand stand and say no to violence against women and children.”
He said autistic children also needed to be protected — and the government had provided facilities for them to study and ultimately graduate.
Mabuyane said three decades of freedom was not only a milestone but a project to build a non-racist and non-sexist nation.
Earlier, co-operative governance and traditional affairs deputy minister Prince Zolile Burns-Ncamashe said freedom belonged to the people.
“There’s still work to be done.
“We must protect our children’s future.”
Meanwhile, the DA marked the day by picketing outside Dora Nginza Hospital in Gqeberha, where recent footage laid bare a dysfunctional healthcare system.
Patients lay neglected on the floors.
The video also exposed an alleged absence of medical staff.
DA Eastern Cape provincial leader Andrew Whitfield said it was not an isolated incident.
“We cannot speak of freedom while communities are denied reliable health care.
“A collapsing health system strips people of dignity and equality.”
He said the province remained SA’s murder and rape capital, with the highest unemployment rate in the country.
Across the province, service delivery had ground to a halt.
“We honour those who fought so hard to lead SA out of oppression and into democracy.
“But more than three decades on, true freedom remains out of reach for most.
“There can be no real freedom where people face unemployment, poverty, violent crime, failing schools and health care, and a lack of basic services.
“The promise of freedom has faded most visibly in the Eastern Cape.”
He said the Eastern Cape faced the worst unemployment crisis in SA.
The official unemployment rate stands at 42.5%, with 79,000 jobs lost over the past year.
“Our people are trapped in poverty. They are not free. Crime, too, continues to tighten its grip.
“Our people live in fear. They are prisoners in their own homes. They are not free.
“At the same time, the collapse of services in most municipalities has left communities suffering from ongoing water and electricity outages, crumbling roads and non-existent sanitation.
“They are not free.”
The EFF Freedom Day commemoration at the Feather Market Centre in Gqeberha sent out a clear political message ahead of the upcoming elections.
Leaders reflected on SA’s progress since 1994 and urged citizens to consider a change in government.
EFF secretary-general Marshall Dlamini questioned if the promises of freedom had been fulfilled and called for urgent action.
“We are meeting 32 years after we were given our freedom, yet many of the promises made remain unfulfilled.”
He said these included access to land, working hospitals, electricity and water, and that a democratic government would improve the lives of black citizens.
“Today we must ask, where are the jobs that were promised?,” Dlamini said.
“Where is the free education? What has been done for the people of Nelson Mandela Bay? We must confront these questions.
“Our youth are suffering, turning to drugs and alcohol, not out of choice but due to a lack of opportunities.
“If we don’t demand accountability, we risk betraying the sacrifices of those who fought for our liberation.”
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