Ngwathe mayor, Joey Mochela led a municipal delegation to the 87th Institute of Municipal Financial Officers Conference in Durban to receive a Clean Administration Award.
This was in recognition of Ngwathe’s best audit opinion, according to a statement by the municipal media liaison officer, Mr Steve Naale.
He said this milestone emphasises that the municipality, under ANC leadership, is effectively managing public funds while improving and accelerating service delivery.
In her speech, Me Mochela said Ngwathe’s officials were verifying and confirming the status of economically distressed residents as indigents where they qualify as such. ‘While we assist less-privileged indigents, our more robust approach to revenue collection will ensure that those who are able to pay for municipal services are encouraged to do so.’
To sustain the new audit status, the mayor said there is an action plan to make sure every manager strives towards improved performance. ‘In future, junior staff members will handle their daily duties with a positive mindset and diligence,’ she added. ‘Consultants will again be used to compile the annual financial statements, frame a financial turn-around strategy, and assist in skills transfer to ensure that we build internal capacity.’
The mayor said the new chairperson of the finance committee, Mr Masetshego Mo-fokeng, has been tasked to try and maintain and sustain Ngwathe’s ‘unqualified audit status.’ She promised that the youth, women and the disadvantaged would be targeted.
‘While we commission and resurrect reservoir number one, the oldest reservoir in Tumahole, we are also dealing with water leakages to ensure that we provide basic services.’ The mayor thanked external stakeholders and government departments, ‘who played a meaningful role in and contributed to our achievements’.
The DA congratulated the mayor on the award. ‘Although it is not a completely ‘clean’ audit report (it contains “findings”), was very late and was produced at great cost, it is a feather in the mayor’s cap,’ said Arnold Schoonwinkel, the DA spokesperson on municipal finance.
He added that the DA councillors would try and assist Mr Mofokeng in ensuring that Ngwathe’s new audit status is maintained.
The mayor, Joey Mochela and the acting municipal manager Mr P. Tsekedi with the coveted clean administration award.
