Arandis mayor hopes to create 2,500 jobs

By Confidente Reporter

IN his acceptance speech after being re-elected as Arandis mayor by fellow councilors this week, Risto Kapendah set out the council’s priorities and said they aim to create a good number of jobs to help alleviate the plight of the youth.

All incumbent councilors were re-elected to their positions. They are Deputy Mayor Irja Iipinge, management committee chairperson (MC) Errikki Kapiye, members of the MC Onesmus Mangundu and Tuhafeni Jairus, as well as ordinary council members Rudolfine Geises and Cecilie //Hoabes.

The following is an extract of Mayor Kapendah’s acceptance speech.

“First of all, let me extend pleasure in congratulating you all of, colleagues on your re-election. Arandis Town Council is fortunate to be one of the outstanding towns when it comes to strategy implementation. This … is a result of commitment, focus, unity, teamwork and support of both our political leadership, executive team, community members and various development partners.

“Since I was elected into this position, I have been strongly advocating the creation of a conducive environment for the town and its residents and I am convinced that as a result of this, we as a Council has managed to secure investors’ confidence, because it is evident in other localities that where there are conflicts, no investor will have an interest to invest.

“This is further evident in the feedback that I am receiving from various avenues, even as far as from the Members of Parliament, congratulating Arandis for its visionary leadership that is one of the main ingredients for success. In addition to the above, I have also received a lot of positive feedback for the development that is visible in Arandis and this, ladies and gentlemen, is mainly due to the focus and teamwork in ensuring the implementation of our strategic initiatives.

“When we crafted our new Five-Year Strategic Plan, we made a commitment to each other and to our community, that by the end we should have achieved the following: feasible Joint business ventures; establishment of factories: garment, gypsum and protective clothing, including safety boots and food processing plants, as well as alternative energy, such as solar and heavy fuel hybrid plants, a data centre, logistics park, and now a food manufacturer.

“To date we have post-implementation made a host of council resolutions.

In order to develop and grow the local economy we intend to create at least 2,500 jobs within the mentioned ventures.

We have heard the cry of the youth and will do our utmost to adhere and implement those resolutions with vigour and determination.

“Furthermore, we have placed all the aforementioned resolutions in the capable hands of our administration, in order to implement.

This I see as an equally important part. For this reason, I can say that, I am ecstatic to state that we are at an advance stage of achieving these and I would like to make use of this opportunity to thank each and every person and/or institution that played a role in assisting us to realize these objectives.

“It is true that development takes time, but it is equally important to map out the future development of our towns.

Thus, we are committed to our New Five-Year Strategic launched in at the end of August this year we are planning to implement it with vigor and determination to the letter and spirit, rock-stock and barrel. We have an obligation to ensure that the future development of our towns is done properly, so that our children can reap the benefits thereof.

“… Although we are representing different political parties, I had a strong desire to focus on cultivating a united team and I am convinced that I have succeeded in this. Because my role as chairperson of the Council is to ensure that the meetings are conducted in such a manner that no political differences are entertained in our chambers, because we are all representing the wellbeing of our community.

“Another important factor for success is fostering healthy relationships and one of these is the interdependency between the Office of the Mayor and the Office of the Chief Executive Officer.

This relationship can never be misjudged for political interference, especially if the agenda is solely based on the development of the organisation, the town and its inhabitants.

“I will continue to strengthen these relationships between the current and future stakeholders so that we can build this town as a team. Arandis is already regarded as a best practice [model] for Smart Partnerships and this is mainly due to the implementation of our strategic plan.

“In conclusion, I would like to emphasise my message of unity to the team. It is a known fact that “United we Stand, divided we fall”… Let us continue with the development of Arandis in a spirit of unity.

Our personal agenda should not become the order of the day. Our agenda should only contain issues of improving the livelihoods of our community and to realize the vision of making Arandis a town of choice.”