13 from Merafong to go on trip to Morocco
The municipality says that this is part of their strategy for the future.
Various eyebrows were raised this week when the municipal council of our cash-strapped Merafong City Local Municipality approved that a 13-person delegation of the municipality could go on a business trip to Morocco.
The council decided to proceed with the decision despite various complaints from all opposition parties during an urgent council meeting on August 14.
The delegation consists of Executive Mayor Nozuko Best, Deputy Mayor Mogomotsi Sello, Chief Whip Thabo Mokuke, as well as the MMC’s for Local Economic Development. Energy, Human Settlements and Land Development, and Finance.
The Municipal Manager, Dumisani Mabuza, the executive managers for economic development and urban planning, energy, IDP and intergovernmental relations (IGR) and the Chief Financial Officer will also be part of the delegation.
According to Merafong, the politicians and officials have to go on the trip to explore a partnership between the municipality and Capricorn Energy & Gas (Pty) Ltd, the BL Tech Group and Agamine Solar Solutions in Morocco. This is to explore a plant that manufactures solar street lights that is owned by Agamine Solar Solutions in Agadir in Morocco.
The municipality says it does not only want to put up some of these solar lights around our area, but also wants to ask Agamine Solar Solutions to set up a manufacturing plant in Merafong. It further wants to see whether it can sign a twinning agreement with Agadir in Morocco and wants to signs a memorandum of understanding with the various companies.
It says that all the projects are part of its economic turn-around strategy called Re-imagining Merafong Vision 2035. This strategy includes promoting the growth of existing economic sectors as well as identifying and attracting new economic sectors and investments.
Although the companies will pay the Merafong delegates’ travel and accommodation costs, the municipality will pay a subsistence and travel allowance for all the delegates itself.
“Our biggest complaint is that our municipality always complains that it does not have enough money, even for basic service delivery, but now they want to send all these people on an overseas trip. Another question is why so many politicians and extra officials must go along? Why not only send the officials who work with these matters? Another big issue is why the municipality must go out of the country for solar lights if there are many companies within South Africa who can do the same work,” says Carlos Rebelo, the leader of the DA which is the biggest opposition party in the council.
Representatives from various other opposition parties echoed these complaints.
Although the Herald asked the municipal spokesperson when the trip of more than 11 000 km to Agadir in Morocco will take place, no answers were forthcoming.
Among other questions, the Herald also asked what the approximate costs for the trip would be and what benefits and possible job opportunities the trip might lead to if all goes according to plan.
Amid this planned trip Merafong Municipality is riddled in debt. The municipality owed Rand Water a total of R1 023 020 113 by June 30 this year.
It also owed the bulk electricity provider Eskom a whopping R917 937 764. A total of R2 064 613 of the municipality’s current account was more than 30 days outstanding.
