Chairperson, the ACDP welcomes the Local Government Laws Amendment Bill as tabled here today. Since 1994, many changes have come into effect as local government progressed through its different stages of development. New municipalities and metros were formed and new directives on how to manage these local authorities were put in place in order for them to fulfil their commitments. Governance in local government is intimately connected with the people we serve, thus it must not stagnate. There needs to be constant change to all legislation pertaining to local government management and the participating role that communities play to determine their own future. It is very important to have an active and a well-empowered ward committee system in every ward as a matter of urgency, thus we need a fresh look at new ward committees, their functioning and their empowerment of participating role- players.
The ACDP therefore supports this First Reading debate on the Local Government Laws Amendment Bill. [Applause.]