KwaMagxaki: The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality’s KwaMagxaki customer care centre has officially reopened its doors following a four-year closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to South African Government News Agency, during its non-operational period, the centre suffered significant damage from vandalism, which affected the building structure, including electrical cables and other vital equipment. This forced ratepayers from KwaMagxaki, KwaDwesi, Veeplas, Zwide, Joe Slovo, and KwaDwesi Extension to travel to other areas for assistance with their accounts, applications, and general inquiries.
Speaking at the official reopening of the centre, Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Mayor, Babalwa Lobishe, emphasized the administration’s commitment to efficient service delivery. “We are happy that the people will no longer have to pay for transport to go pay their rates or inquire about our services, especially the indigent and the elderly. We have brought the service to their doorstep,” Lobishe stated. She also highlighted the importance of balancing service provision with payment, urging residents to protect the centre against vandalism.
The centre will offer a range of services, including ‘assistance to the poor (ATTP)’ applications, debt repayment arrangements, Interactive Voice Response (IVR) registration, water rebate applications, Estate Late Project (free property transfer for surviving ATTP beneficiaries), and opening of service accounts. It will also assist with property valuation certificates, copies of municipal statements, and account balance inquiries.
Mayoral Committee Member for Budget and Treasury, Khanya Ngqisha, noted the directorate’s focus on providing cost-effective services for ratepayers. “We are excited, as this will serve our residents efficiently. We encourage our people to come and receive the services that have been tailor-made for them,” Ngqisha said.
A local resident, Zoleka Jonas, expressed her satisfaction with the reopening, stating, “We will no longer spend money to go to town for services. It will just be a walk-in, and your enquiries will be solved. We are grateful to our ward councillor and the mayor for this service.”