Buffalo City Metro wants to keep controversial details on the use of municipal funds including questionable projects out of the public eye by reclassifying certain documents to “top secret”, with acting municipal manager Nceba Ncunyana saying this was to prevent information from being leaked.
“This is a way of prevention of leaking of information and managing the disappearing of documents,” said Ncunyana.
Before the new coding, confidential matters were printed on pink paper. The new top secret documents will be printed on bright orange paper.
“…in pink paper we could not distinguish between the ones the public can have access to and those they cannot. These new (orange papers) will be embargoed forever and we want them bright so that we can easily see the people who should not be in possession of them,” he said.
Included in some of the orange coded papers that are expected to be discussed in council today is the controversial R17.3-million sports sponsorship saga, where some of the funds were used for sports events that never took place. The council roped in forensic investigators KPMG to probe the dodgy spending, which included a R250000 “egg-and-spoon” race tournament, a hockey tournament, a tug-of-war contest, a bucket race, soccer, rugby and netball, among others.
R3-million which was supposed to have gone towards the Buyel’Ekhaya Music Festival also disappeared.
Another new “top secret” report which was previously classified as confidential is a damning report implicating South African Community Party Skenjana Roji District treasurer Xolani Wonono of unduly benefiting from the Mdantsane Urban Renewal Programme (Murp).
Opposition parties who have served in the BCM council in previous terms expressed surprise at the news.
Councillor Luke Quse of the African Christian Democratic Party, who has served on the council for more than 10 years, said: “This is the first time that we have such a thing and it is shocking that in a municipality where we should be dealing with serving the community we are now dealing with matters as if we are dealing with state security information.
“Historically there was none of this and this is a matter that we need to discuss as it was never discussed in council. I was surprised as this is my third term in that council and I have never heard of such a thing.”
The DA’s party whip Olwethu Ntame also said the party’s councillors found the new classification a surprise.
“It was mentioned in some of the discussions that we had but there was never any deliberation on the matter, hence we found this surprising. There was no explanation. In our caucus tomorrow we shall discuss the matter,” Ntame said.
She added that often documents were classified as confidential reports even when there was no justification for this.
EFF party whip Chumani Matiwane said the party had no view on the new classification as they were still new in council and did not know how things were previously done.
“It would be premature of us to take a stand on the matter,” Matiwane said.
BCM executive mayor Xola Pakati denied allegations that the matter had not been discussed in council.
He said: “This matter was discussed in council on August 31 2016. There were no disagreements with it so we assumed that it was agreed on. If there are such complaints we will deal with them in council tomorrow .”
Some opposition councillors accused the new council leadership of “Mafia leadership” and the ANC of trying to “hide its dirt”.
However, Pakati said: “We are not Mafia. We are civil politicians. The new classification is needed to control and manage information within the metro. The top secret classification has always been there but never implemented because we did not have the orange paper it is printed on, and now we have it.
“There is a first time for everything,” Pakati said.
In July the Dispatch reported the spotlight of the R17.3-million probe by KPMG is expected to fall on the role of former BCM councillor Ayanda Peter, who chaired the sports sponsorship committee when the funds were donated.
Her husband, Tori Mcilongo, received a R200000 donation for a draughts tournament that never took place. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
Outrage at Metro blackout
“This is a way of prevention of leaking of information and managing the disappearing of documents,” said Ncunyana.
Before the new coding, confidential matters were printed on pink paper. The new top secret documents will be printed on bright orange paper.
“…in pink paper we could not distinguish between the ones the public can have access to and those they cannot. These new (orange papers) will be embargoed forever and we want them bright so that we can easily see the people who should not be in possession of them,” he said.
Included in some of the orange coded papers that are expected to be discussed in council today is the controversial R17.3-million sports sponsorship saga, where some of the funds were used for sports events that never took place. The council roped in forensic investigators KPMG to probe the dodgy spending, which included a R250000 “egg-and-spoon” race tournament, a hockey tournament, a tug-of-war contest, a bucket race, soccer, rugby and netball, among others.
R3-million which was supposed to have gone towards the Buyel’Ekhaya Music Festival also disappeared.
Another new “top secret” report which was previously classified as confidential is a damning report implicating South African Community Party Skenjana Roji District treasurer Xolani Wonono of unduly benefiting from the Mdantsane Urban Renewal Programme (Murp).
Opposition parties who have served in the BCM council in previous terms expressed surprise at the news.
Councillor Luke Quse of the African Christian Democratic Party, who has served on the council for more than 10 years, said: “This is the first time that we have such a thing and it is shocking that in a municipality where we should be dealing with serving the community we are now dealing with matters as if we are dealing with state security information.
“Historically there was none of this and this is a matter that we need to discuss as it was never discussed in council. I was surprised as this is my third term in that council and I have never heard of such a thing.”
The DA’s party whip Olwethu Ntame also said the party’s councillors found the new classification a surprise.
“It was mentioned in some of the discussions that we had but there was never any deliberation on the matter, hence we found this surprising. There was no explanation. In our caucus tomorrow we shall discuss the matter,” Ntame said.
She added that often documents were classified as confidential reports even when there was no justification for this.
EFF party whip Chumani Matiwane said the party had no view on the new classification as they were still new in council and did not know how things were previously done.
“It would be premature of us to take a stand on the matter,” Matiwane said.
BCM executive mayor Xola Pakati denied allegations that the matter had not been discussed in council.
He said: “This matter was discussed in council on August 31 2016. There were no disagreements with it so we assumed that it was agreed on. If there are such complaints we will deal with them in council tomorrow .”
Some opposition councillors accused the new council leadership of “Mafia leadership” and the ANC of trying to “hide its dirt”.
However, Pakati said: “We are not Mafia. We are civil politicians. The new classification is needed to control and manage information within the metro. The top secret classification has always been there but never implemented because we did not have the orange paper it is printed on, and now we have it.
“There is a first time for everything,” Pakati said.
In July the Dispatch reported the spotlight of the R17.3-million probe by KPMG is expected to fall on the role of former BCM councillor Ayanda Peter, who chaired the sports sponsorship committee when the funds were donated.
Her husband, Tori Mcilongo, received a R200000 donation for a draughts tournament that never took place. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
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