PLANS to merge poor-performing and dysfunctional municipalities are at an advanced stage, acting Eastern Cape premier Phumulo Masualle has said.
Speaking at a governance and administration cluster media briefing last week, Masualle said some municipalities could not be allowed to continue as they were.
“We need to look at their viability. We need to scale two or three of them down into one. Some only survive on handouts from provincial and national government,” said Masualle.
He said the demarcation board and department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs were also involved in the talks.
“They are actually driving the process. When we have completed that process the demarcation board will take it to the affected communities.”
Masualle admitted that municipal performances had regressed from previous financial years.
“We have seen some of the municipalities, especially the small ones, regressing.”
In the 2011-12 financial year none of the 45 provincial municipalities received a clean audit from auditor-general Terence Nombembe and 19 received disclaimers and adverse opinions.
Masualle also acknowledged that the province would not meet the 2014 clean audit deadline.
Nombembe said unauthorised expenditure in all 45 municipalities had increased from R570million in the 2010-11 financial year to more than R2.23-billion in the 2011-12 financial year.
Councillors and municipal officials and their families and other civil servants received more than R117-million in municipal tenders, compared with R54-million the previous financial year.
Nombembe’s report also showed that irregular expenditure had increased from R2-billion in 2010-11 to close to R3billion in 2011-12.
“The provincial treasury and local government and traditional affairs department have provided hands-on support for financial management in eight municipalities . Furthermore, funding was provided to five municipalities, including Makana, for the development of revenue enhancement strategies,” said Masualle.
Masualle said municipalities in the province owed over R811-million. —
Plans to merge poor-performing municipalities at ‘advanced stage’
Speaking at a governance and administration cluster media briefing last week, Masualle said some municipalities could not be allowed to continue as they were.
“We need to look at their viability. We need to scale two or three of them down into one. Some only survive on handouts from provincial and national government,” said Masualle.
He said the demarcation board and department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs were also involved in the talks.
“They are actually driving the process. When we have completed that process the demarcation board will take it to the affected communities.”
Masualle admitted that municipal performances had regressed from previous financial years.
“We have seen some of the municipalities, especially the small ones, regressing.”
In the 2011-12 financial year none of the 45 provincial municipalities received a clean audit from auditor-general Terence Nombembe and 19 received disclaimers and adverse opinions.
Masualle also acknowledged that the province would not meet the 2014 clean audit deadline.
Nombembe said unauthorised expenditure in all 45 municipalities had increased from R570million in the 2010-11 financial year to more than R2.23-billion in the 2011-12 financial year.
Councillors and municipal officials and their families and other civil servants received more than R117-million in municipal tenders, compared with R54-million the previous financial year.
Nombembe’s report also showed that irregular expenditure had increased from R2-billion in 2010-11 to close to R3billion in 2011-12.
“The provincial treasury and local government and traditional affairs department have provided hands-on support for financial management in eight municipalities . Furthermore, funding was provided to five municipalities, including Makana, for the development of revenue enhancement strategies,” said Masualle.
Masualle said municipalities in the province owed over R811-million. —
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