A STRUGGLING Eastern Cape municipality, slammed by the auditor-general for its poor financial performance, spent thousands of rands on a five-day jaunt to Mpekweni Resort.
About 100 staff members, 34 councillors and six traditional leaders of Emalahleni municipality, which covers Lady Frere, Dordrecht and Indwe, attended the workshop between February 16 and 21, according to an ANC councillor.
This is the same municipality slated for incurring unauthorised expenditure of R10.2-million and irregular expenditure of R74.1-million during the 2012-13 financial year.
Mpekweni appears to be a favoured haunt for municipalities around the province in the past few weeks, with OR Tambo and Chris Hani districts also spending a few days there.
When phoned for comment, Emalahleni municipal manager Wiseman Vatala said he had no idea what the Daily Dispatch was talking about and that questions should be sent via e-mail.
No response had been received from either Vatala or municipal spokesman Luthando Nqumkana to the e-mailed questions by the time of going to print.
ANC chief whip Sibha Liwani defended the trip, saying it was prudent for the council and officials to meet to discuss ways of taking the municipality out of the red.
“It was not a waste. It was a council decision to go to Mpekweni Resort. We agreed there should be a planning session at Mpekweni so that we could have a better audit opinion this year,” said Liwani.
DA councillor Pieter Greyling refused to participate in the trip, adding he was only informed about it three days before it was due to start.
“I refused to go because I felt it was a waste of money. We could have had it in Lady Frere. I have put a question forward to the speaker to ask how much the trip cost and who went there and whether it was budgeted for.
“They told me about it – they knew I would have objected had I known earlier,” said Greyling.
UDM’s Kwaaiman Mjezu attended the workshop but said nothing new had been discussed.
“There was no reason to go that far – we could have used the boardroom or any other venue in the municipal area. What I saw was the ruling party trying to unite its people at the expense of taxpayers’ money.” — abongilem@dispatch.co.za
Council planning trip a ‘waste of money’
About 100 staff members, 34 councillors and six traditional leaders of Emalahleni municipality, which covers Lady Frere, Dordrecht and Indwe, attended the workshop between February 16 and 21, according to an ANC councillor.
This is the same municipality slated for incurring unauthorised expenditure of R10.2-million and irregular expenditure of R74.1-million during the 2012-13 financial year.
Mpekweni appears to be a favoured haunt for municipalities around the province in the past few weeks, with OR Tambo and Chris Hani districts also spending a few days there.
When phoned for comment, Emalahleni municipal manager Wiseman Vatala said he had no idea what the Daily Dispatch was talking about and that questions should be sent via e-mail.
No response had been received from either Vatala or municipal spokesman Luthando Nqumkana to the e-mailed questions by the time of going to print.
ANC chief whip Sibha Liwani defended the trip, saying it was prudent for the council and officials to meet to discuss ways of taking the municipality out of the red.
“It was not a waste. It was a council decision to go to Mpekweni Resort. We agreed there should be a planning session at Mpekweni so that we could have a better audit opinion this year,” said Liwani.
DA councillor Pieter Greyling refused to participate in the trip, adding he was only informed about it three days before it was due to start.
“I refused to go because I felt it was a waste of money. We could have had it in Lady Frere. I have put a question forward to the speaker to ask how much the trip cost and who went there and whether it was budgeted for.
“They told me about it – they knew I would have objected had I known earlier,” said Greyling.
UDM’s Kwaaiman Mjezu attended the workshop but said nothing new had been discussed.
“There was no reason to go that far – we could have used the boardroom or any other venue in the municipal area. What I saw was the ruling party trying to unite its people at the expense of taxpayers’ money.” — abongilem@dispatch.co.za
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