THE Democratic Alliance (DA) has requested eThekwini Municipal Manager, Sipho Nzuza, conduct an urgent investigation into R2 million of ratepayers’ money which was wasted on a Council-approved overseas trip that went horribly wrong.
According to Chris Pappas, DA eThekwini Councillor, the eThekwini Council approved a request from the eThekwini Traffic Authority (ETA) to send a delegation of 59 people to Colombia to assess the public transport system in that country.
He said the municipality claimed the aim of the trip was to encourage local bus and taxi operators to buy into the Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network (IRPTN) currently being rolled out in the city.
“Shockingly, the delegation never made it to Colombia despite R2 million being spent. The eThekwini Municipality failed to obtain the visas required to enter Colombia and were stranded in Sao Paulo, Brazil,” he said.
Upon their departure for Sao Paulo to Colombia, Brazillian officials stopped the delegation who did not have the correct documents to proceed.
READ RELATED: DA rejects R2 million price tag for delegation to South America
The delegation to Colombia was led by Head of ETA Thami Manyathi. Pappas said Manyathi and the other officials scrambled to make a plan as the delegation had no food and no accommodation planned in Brazil. Sources in the municipality say that between R400 000 and R500 000 in additional funding was requested from the City to pay for the unplanned stay in Brazil, and there is no indication of how this money was approved or who approved it.
The delegation, according to Pappas, was forced to spend a ‘holiday’ in Brazil with many of the operators taking time to visit malls and bars until their return flight to South Africa. To date, no report has been received nor has a debrief with operators and officials taken place. In addition, the bus and taxi operators are demanding that the original trip to Colombia be replanned.
“The DA believes there needs to be a thorough investigation into the matter and that someone must be held accountable. This is not a small mistake like forgetting to pay your parking ticket,” he said.
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