By Akani Nkuna
The Johannesburg Bomb Squad (JBS), which will tackle lawlessness, urban decay and the service delivery backlog, was launched in the metro on Thursday.
It follows commitments made by Mayor Dada Morero in his State of the City Address last month.
Speaking during the launch at the Soweto Hote in Kliptown, Morero told reporters that the unit aimed would also help enforce by-laws and restore order across the metro as part of a broader push to improve urban management and responsiveness to community needs.
He said business intelligence gathering would be at the core of the work of the JBS.
“This will be executed by having meetings with the relevant parties/authorities to isolate areas of potential land and or building invasions and to propose proactive intervention,” the mayor added.
The unit would focus on removing barriers that stalled the city’s progress and delayed the fulfilment of its long-term development goals.
Integrated into the recently established Johannesburg Presidential Support Group, the team is designed to enhance coordination, avoid overlapping and ensure high-impact interventions.
According to Morero, the JBS would play a central role in driving the revitalisation and transformation of Johannesburg’s urban landscape.
“The objective will be to activate rapid response teams in response to reported service delivery hotspots, to be the eyes and ears of the executive mayor, to activate rapid interventions to address lawlessness in the city and to execute of a minimum programme of (the) high impact visibility programme,” Morero said.
The JBS’s operations will be guided by a precinct-based approach, targeting specific areas across Johannesburg for focused and coordinated intervention.
Morero said that a tailored implementation plan was being developed to ensure this strategy was effectively rolled out. This would ensure a measurable impact in revitalising urban spaces and addressing service delivery challenges at the local level.
“It will also be necessary for the bomb squad to develop appropriate interaction mechanisms with the city’s service delivery war room,” he added.
The JBS began operating at the start of the month under the leadership of African National Congress Veterans’ League president Snuki Zikalala. This initiative will be supported by the city’s project management office and former executive members.
The mayor said that operational and logistical support for the team would be provided through the office of the operating office to ensure streamlined coordination and effective execution of its mandate.
Morero further said that the success of the JBS would depend on adequate financial support. He called on all sectors to partner with the city to ensure the unit’s effectiveness, emphasising that collaborative efforts were essential to empowering the squad to deliver meaningful change.
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