SALGA defends KZN municipalities that cut off debt-ridden businesses

Thami Ntuli, the KwaZulu-Natal chair of local government association Salga, has defended municipalities that have resorted to disconnecting businesses and government departments that have defaulted on their services and rates accounts in order to control debt.

Ntuli was addressing SALGA’s provincial assembly last week in Empangeni. The event was attended by 54 mayors and municipal managers.

Ntuli praised the mayors of four municipalities, including Greater Kokstad, Msunduzi, Newcastle, and uMngeni, for ‘raking in millions by turning off services for those who are in debt.’

He stated that the move had become a point of contention in recent meetings between the Cogta MEC, Sihle Zikalala, and the mayors.

“The mayors were unequivocal and stood firm. Municipal services are funded by school boards and hospital CEOs, but this money is diverted to other priorities. This is becoming unfair,” Ntuli said.

Zikalala had decided to create ‘a war room’ to deal with the problem.

Ntuli expressed concern that the provincial government was tasked with assisting municipalities. The provincial treasury should be concerned that some bills were not paid by councils.

The rampant killing of councillors in the province was also in the spotlight.

According to Ntuli, a councillor in the province is assassinated once a month. He claimed that the government’s response to this trend was not effective,

“As Salga, we were shocked by the revelations in the ministerial handbook that ministers enjoy VIP security protection on at least three of their properties while councillors are not afforded that privilege,” Ntuli said.

This, according to Ntuli, is exacerbated by the lack of police and government action when councillors are threatened.

Other challenges mentioned include the alleged slow response of government departments, a lack of district planning due to the provincial government not having district-based plans (and thus not participating effectively at the district-development level), and a lack of youth-focused programmes.

Ntuli slammed the policy of some councils to hire consultants to carry out municipal work.

“Some consultants charge three times the salary of a full-time CFO,” Ntuli explained.

He joined the chorus of condemnation of the country’s power problems, blaming this on poor maintenance, years of delays in the completion of new coal-fired power plants, and Eskom’s massive debt.

“The impact of load-shedding has significant financial consequences on municipal revenue as more and more customers seek alternatives to Eskom-generated electricity,” Ntuli explained.

He insisted that renewable energy was not a panacea. However, Salga believes that renewable energy has the potential to keep municipalities running in the face of Eskom’s failures.

“Because municipalities provide essential and basic services, they should be protected from load-shedding disruptions. Salga members must identify essential services that require continuous power supply,” Ntuli said.

He claimed that the timing of interest rate hikes posed a threat to municipalities, which were already burdened by record levels of government and consumer debt.

Nkosiyezwe Vezi, chair of the KZN Institute of Local Government Management, expressed concern about salary cuts that some managers face as a result of their employment terms.

He stated that in some cases, managers’ salaries were reduced by R25,000.

“I need to be able to afford a car, a pension, and to send my children to school,” said Vezi, the municipal manager for Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Municipality.

Despite the difficulties, he stated that they were willing to continue serving in the municipalities.

“We love our country, and we are adamant that no funds will be misappropriated,” Vezi said.

He maintained that they believed that all managers should strive to serve the public rather than the political parties to which they were affiliated.

“That is why we advocate for professionalization where managers are given longer term and longer contracts,” Vezi explained.
Veza stated that they were relieved that there is now a new law that protects managers’ jobs when a new administration takes over. He believes this will contribute significantly to local government stability.

“This eliminates the trend of purging those who are deemed not to be affiliated with a political party governing the municipality at the time,” Vezi said.

The news provided to you in this link has been investigated and compiled by the editorial staff of the Newcastle Advertiser, a sold newspaper distributed in the Newcastle area. Please follow us on Youtube and feel free to like, comment, and subscribe. For more local news, visit our webpage, follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and request an add on our WhatsApp (082 874 5550).