The committee is expected to be chaired by Infrastructure Development MEC Jacob Mamabolo but details about its formation, configuration and duration remain unclear and will be finalised in a few days.
The committee will focus on planning, modelling, and assessing the risk profiles of the municipalities using recommendations made by various stakeholders during a two-day local government turnaround summit held from 23 to 24 October 2024 at the Misty Hills Hotel in Muldersdrift.
Deputy Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Dickson Masemola. (Photo: Felix Dlangamandla / Daily Maverick)
During a keynote address, Deputy Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Dickson Masemola, highlighted Gauteng’s significance as the backbone of the national economy.
“We cannot allow the collapse of metros in Gauteng. The province is carrying the entire nation. We need to restore the municipalities in the province. As the financial hub, if Gauteng collapses, then the nation collapses,” said Masemola.
Read more: Municipal audit results continue to decline — irregular, wasteful expenditure balloons to R7.4bn
On Thursday, the summit had a session focused on presentations of municipal plans by executive mayors, but surprisingly only three mayors pitched — Nasiphi Moya from Pretoria, Doctor Xhakaza of Ekurhuleni and Peter Teixeira of Midvaal. Other municipalities, including Johannesburg, sent delegates who did not give presentations.
Tshwane
The City of Tshwane’s financial challenges are well documented; they were also laid bare by Moya, who revealed that the municipality had also been struggling to pay off its R7.1-billion debt to Eskom.
Moya highlighted issues such as crumbling infrastructure and lack of access to essential services like housing, water, and electricity. Despite these challenges, he outlined plans to turn around the city’s fortunes, including enhancing revenue streams and overhauling supply chain management.
MEC of Infrastructure Development Jacob Mamabolo. (Photo: Gallo Images / Luba Lesolle)
Moya was not oblivious to the fact that while the city had great ideas on how it intended to turn things around, it needed support.
“Unfortunately, we cannot achieve a turnaround in Tshwane on our own. The provincial and national government can help the City urgently address outstanding debt to Eskom. This would enable us to fund critical infrastructure projects,” Moya said.
Ekurhuleni
Ekurhuleni is an important industrial and logistics centre in Gauteng, and is home to OR Tambo International Airport, one of Africa’s largest airports.
Much like the City of Tshwane, it also grapples with service delivery challenges such as a lack of access to housing, water and electricity, poor and crumbling infrastructure, poverty and fiscal pressures.
Xhakaza shone the spotlight on the City’s unfunded budget that negatively affected the ability to render services to communities. Of the metro’s total budget, Xhakaza said only 10% came from the National Treasury, suggesting that it was just a drop in the ocean.
“Our communities are depressed, our people do not have money,” Xhakaza said. The situation was further crippled by the growing population.
Midvaal
While Midvaal has received a clean audit for 10 consecutive years, it is not without challenges. Teixeira pointed to the issue of non-payment of services, including water and electricity, by residents who were in a financial position to do so.
This problem, according to Teixeira, was created by politicians who promised free services during election campaigns in exchange for votes.
“We will never fix this thing unless we change the culture. I would really like to condemn us, the politicians for making promises of free water and electricity while campaigning for votes.”
He also pointed to the issue of landfill sites that affected not only Midvaal, but also Emfuleni.
“How are we to attract investment if it is dirty?” Teixeira asked.
He has been intentional in capitalising on the clean audit outcome to attract more investment. Under his term, the municipality has secured R1.3-billion in investment. Part of this investment includes the construction of Riverside Mall, a first for the municipality, costing R600-million. It will create 1,200 jobs, including about 250 permanent positions once it is finished in early 2025.
Provincial intervention
Premier Panyaza Lesufi said the provincial government had taken a resolution to assist the municipalities, but the support would be implemented city by city.
“So we are of the view that we need to select certain towns and develop them because of the strategic position that they are in. So we will come to each and every municipality and say, just give us one town in our area, and we will come closer to you and assist you to redevelop that area,” Lesufi said.
These areas that will be first on the list include Kempton Park, in Ekurhuleni.
In response to concerns from civil society organisations, including Jozi My Jozi, about the deterioration of Johannesburg, Lesufi said that the CBD would be the starting point for intervention.
“We’re here to rescue you. You’ve been fighting this battle alone, but we are coming to help. We will liberate the Johannesburg CBD by implementing a policing strategy with units on the streets 24/7,” Lesufi said.
Funding model
While funding issues were common across all metros, Masemola said there was a need for the funding model for local government to be reviewed.
“Sustainable service delivery cannot be achieved without addressing municipalities’ financial challenges. Traditional leaders play a critical role, and we must create a more inclusive and local government,” said Masemola.
The provincial government will brief the media on Tuesday about upcoming steps, as the full details of the findings and proposed solutions could not be presented at the summit due to time constraints. DM