Note to editors: Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Cllr Richard van Wyk and Sesotho by Karabo Khakhau MP.
The financial and service delivery collapse in Kopanong Municipality confirms the need for provincial intervention. Persistent delays in salary payments, mismanagement of provincial and national grants, resulting in the retrieval of unutilized funds, and a lack of investment in local infrastructure and equipment have inexorably propelled the municipality towards a crisis.
This financial instability not only adversely impacts the municipal workforce but also obstructs essential community projects, stalling local development efforts. Moreover, residents bear the brunt of mismanagement, facing steep bills even as basic services suffer due to funding shortages.
In December 2023, a critical blow was dealt when the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) pension fund attached the municipal account due to a staggering R67 million debt. Despite the municipality’s initial offer of R2 million to settle the matter, SAMWU declined, now demanding a hefty R19 million, worsening the current financial crisis.
The municipality is on the brink of a severe breakdown in service delivery across its nine towns, grappling with uncollected refuse and a lone truck struggling to serve three towns, leaving our communities neglected and in squalor.
The consequences of this mismanagement are glaring, with our communities bearing the brunt of this crisis. In an upcoming council meeting, we will urge the municipality to examine the lack of service delivery and demand transparency on the municipality’s plan to repay the outstanding funds.
Additionally, according to Section 139 of the Constitution, which empowers provincial executives to intervene when a municipality fails in its obligations, the DA will actively seek provincial intervention to rectify this dire situation.