AFRICAN National Congress councillors passed the R780-million adjustment budget on Friday, 28 February, the second day of the eThekwini full council meeting.
A majority of 117 (115 ANC, 2 Independent) councillors voted in favour of the budget, 50 (45 Democratic Alliance, 4 Inkatha Freedom Party and 1 African Christian Democratic Party) voted against the recommendation while 8 abstained (6 Economic Freedom Fighters, 2 African Independent Congress).
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Ernest Smith, Berea ward Councillor, explained why he voted against the budget.
“The reality is we cannot expect the taxpayer to foot the bill every time the ANC messes around with public funds,” he said.
“This is why voting is important and that we as your representatives are empowered to keep the ANC in check when they try and steamroll items without deliberation with opposition parties.”
The adjusted budget is made up of reprioritized funds from various city units who underspent their allocations.
The adjustment budget comes just days after Mxolisi Kaunda, eThekwini Mayor, during an Exco meeting this week, said underspending on projects and shuffling money around should not become a “culture” in eThekwini and called for vibrant oversight going forward.
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Yesterday, opposition parties threatened to walk out of council after ANC councillors tried to push the budget through to a vote, a mere 10 minutes after parties had received the document.
The following major items are funded on the adjustment budget:
Metro Police Overtime – R105 million, Expanded Public Works Programme – R65 million, Security Management – R30 million, Solid Waste overtime – R21 million, Disaster Management grant in aid – R33 million, Reinsurance additional premium (assets) – R60 million, Real estate (Embassy and Delta Rentals) – R9 million, Strategic office (Congress of United Cities and Local Governments) – R20 million, Software licenses (IT Microsoft Enterprise Licenses) – R32 million, Water Services (Repairs, maintenance and security) – R46 million
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