Note to Editors: Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Leona Kleynhans MPL
The admission made by MEC of Cogta, Makume, at a portfolio committee meeting last week, that the department is not able to rescue Free State municipalities in states of extreme deterioration, due to the department not having ‘the financial or human resources, skills or capacity’ to extend the required support to such failed municipalities is shocking but expected.
This deterioration includes: of the total number of 129 senior posts required at municipalities, 73 are vacant. A 57% vacancy rate. Only 8 of the 23 municipalities have a qualified permanent Municipal Manager. Only 11 of the municipalities have a permanent and qualified CFO, only 13 have a qualified Director of Technical Services, and only 4 have a qualified Town Planner. Due to this, the department has had to second 14 officials to assist at some of the municipalities.
Municipalities owe R27 billion to creditors, of which R18 billion is to Eskom. Municipalities are owed R21 billion by consumers, including government.
MEC Makume complained that the support initiatives in terms of Sec 154 of the Constitution are not yielding results because of political resistance and weak council leadership. He complained that municipalities ignore directives and instructions, and defy legal obligations to submit prescribed reports such as Annual Financial Statements, Annual Reports and mandated monthly reports. Most municipalities have budgets which are not funded, and then furthermore do not table funding plans indicating how they will fund their expenses. Most municipalities also do not have credible billing systems and revenue collection is disastrous. 80% of the sewage in the Free State flows untreated into our water resources, while directives from the department of Water and Sanitation, and even court orders, are simply ignored. Staff complements are extremely bloated with workers, while there are very few competent managers to ensure that service delivery happens.
The staff complement of the department includes 301 officials, of which only 69 are dedicated to Local Government. The budget allocated to Local Government programmes is only R100m.
The DA notes that with 69 people, and a budget of R100 million it is not possible to give our 11 totally dysfunctional municipalities the hands-on, and intensive support they need. Much of the support and monitoring consists of desk-top tick-box exercises, and all these support initiatives are simply too little, too late.
It is clear from this meeting, that the ANC government in the Free State do not have the capacity, nor the wherewithal, to save our communities from the devastation which they must endure in our towns and cities. After 29 years of ANC rule, the very foundations of our municipalities have collapsed.
It is only at the ballot box in 2024 that communities will have an opportunity to bring about real change that can improve their lives through unlocking the huge potential for prosperity in the Free State.