Pretoria - Gauteng Local Government and Housing MEC, Humphrey Mmemezi, has called for government to explore ways of protecting property belonging to councillors.
Speaking at the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) Gauteng provincial elective conference in Tshwane on Thursday, Mmemezi said councillors' properties needed to be safeguarded in the event they were attacked or destroyed by the public during violent protests.
Councillors were government's foot soldiers and needed to be "insured" by government, he said.
"We need to find a way to protect our councillors and their properties because they are representatives of government in different communities. We need to be there for them because no one will come to their rescue if we don't," Mmemezi added.
He also stressed the need to continually provide services to people, saying access to opportunities was a critical in order to overcome poverty.
Chairperson of SALGA in Gauteng, Khorommbi Dau, said there was an urgent need for solutions to challenges facing the local government sphere.
"We cannot afford to ignore the many challenges facing councillors and this conference should pronounce on our position as a province, regarding council welfare and security," he said.
The two-day conference will focus on service delivery in the province. Experts from industries that have a direct impact on the local government sphere are also expected to interrogate issues related to service delivery.
