Durban’s world-famous Golden Mile will be ready for a festive season of surf’s up and a splashdown of swimming in good time for a record-breaking influx of bathers, holidaymakers and sun seekers on Christmas Day.
At a special session on the Durban beachfront on Friday, 09 December, the city’s deputy mayor, Philani PG Mavundla, assured the print and electronic media journalists and stakeholders that the beach will be ready in time for the colourful exodus of thousands of fun-seekers from the greater Durban eThekwini Region into the stretches of golden sandy beaches over the Christmas and New Year holiday long weekends – including 27 December – that has been declared an extra public holiday by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
‘’I am going to be on duty from now until Christmas Day and onto the New Year festivities to ensure that the city’s mecca of tourism and leisure time is ready for surfing and splashing in the waves. Our people deserve better and we have to fix things up,’’ quipped the deputy mayor.
After listening to the security representatives, including SAPS, surf and swimming stakeholders, business people and hoteliers, the deputy mayor pledged to escalate the current challenges of sea-water quality, sewerage, ecoli, vagrancy, crime waves, drug and alcohol abuse, attacks by homeless people on tourists and visitors and the theft of cables, pump station equipment and light fittings.
‘’The city hall will immediately test the water quality at R250 per test per day twice daily and attend to all the issues that has attracted scathing criticism from residents and ratepayers. I am also briefing the opposition parties and the provincial ANC so that they will come on board and present this holiday city in a positive and shining light over the festive holidays.’’
Mavundla said resources would be budgeted to fix the Golden Mile – and as he spoke confidently, municipal workers and private contractors were busy cleaning up the jewel of the Indian Ocean Rim – the Rachel Finlayson Olympic-sized public swimming pool and the paddling pools.
‘’I will be putting on my Speedo swimming costume and will be spending longer than five minutes in the surf and enjoy swimming in one of the best blue oceans in Africa.’’
