Winde breezes through Plett

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PLETTENBERG BAY NEWS - Western Cape Premier Alan Winde visited Plettenberg Bay on Monday 27 August to be part of a bricklaying ceremony for a 167 house project in Ebenhaezer.

He made a passionate plea to citizens to respect the infrastructure they are provided with.

"Don't destroy our infrastructure. Don't burn things down. Look after your assets as citizens and taxpayers," said Winde. He said South Africa had a great constitution that allowed citizens to protest.

"They're welcome to that … but they're not welcome to damage property and take other people's lives."

He was referring to a series of protests recently in Swellendam, where protesters burned down the municipal offices, and the violent taxi protests in Cape Town in which five people died, and other unrest in Mossel Bay and George.

A long time coming

Tertuis Simmers, Western Cape Minister of Infrastructure, said the Ebenhaezer project was more than five years in the making, with 179 platforms already erected during "phase one".

When all three phases have been completed there will be 1 674 housing opportunities.

"He said it was more than just mortar and bricks - eight local contractors were used in the construction, creating 75 job opportunities for locals. The first 10 units will be erected by next week and first 10 houses will be handed over by the end of October.

PHOTO GALLERY: Alan Winde visits residents of Ebenezer in Plett

Western Cape premier Alan Winde addresses a crowd outside the Piesang Valley Community Hall during a Cabinet Outreach.

Infrastructure is key

Winde said he had purposefully created a cabinet portfolio to look after infrastructure in the Western Cape, but that the entire South Africa needed more infrastructure.

"Infrastructure enables. The lack of infrastructure in the rest of SA is what's holding back the economy. That's why we've got load-shedding. That's why our trains don't work, and that's why our water system is under severe pressure – if we have another drought and a few years of low rainfall we'll face a crisis," he said.

"Infrastructure – both private and government – created an environment where citizens can live the lives that they value, citizens can feel proud of the space they have chosen and live their lives and bring up their children. We have to ensure to do all the other stuff at the same time, that's why we are providing so much money for safety because if you are not safe in your environment, how do you bring up your children?"

Tertuis Simmers and Alan Winde lend a hand during the bricklaying process at the Ebenhaezer housing project.

Emphasis on law and order

Winde said in an interview that law and order had to be maintained at all times. "Law and order is a basic requirement of a democracy and that has to be paramount and sacrosanct, but, unfortunately it is something that seems to be slipping in SA."

He added that the province created a situation of readiness to react to crises, like Covid-19, the taxi strike, or the KwaZulu-Natal riots, or protests. In such situations he calls an expanded cabinet meeting. The expanded cabinet includes mayors and municipal managers.

Western Cape Premier Alan Winde (second from left) helped lay some bricks at the new Ebenhaezer housing project. Part of his team on the day were Tertuis Simmers (far left), Bitou Mayor Dave Swart and Bitou Speaker Claude Terblanche (far right).