The Democratic Alliance (DA) says it is calling on the Gauteng Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) MEC, Lebogang Maile, to urgently place the failing ANC-led Emfuleni Municipality (ELM) under full administration, in terms of Section 139 (1) (c) of the Constitution, as service delivery has totally collapsed.
The municipality has been under partial administration in terms of Section 139 (1) (b) of the Constitution since June 2018 and has failed.
According to Tebogo Tlhokwe – DA Caucus Leader: Emfuleni Municipality, it is unacceptable that MEC Maile has not yet intervened in this matter, when he is aware that this municipality has failed to fulfil its executive obligations in terms of the Constitution.
The Emfuleni Municipality faces many challenges including incompetence, lack of leadership, mismanagement, and mounting debt.
“The municipality currently owes Eskom R1,6 billion, and Rand Water R540 million, the debtors book has reached R8 billion, having increased by R1 billion during the 2018/19 financial year, and creditors are at 322 days owed, way beyond the 30-day payment timeframe set down by the National Treasury,” says Tlhokwe.
“The municipality also does not have the ability to collect revenue, having only managed to collect 68%.
“The South African National Defence Force (SANDF), which has been deployed to Emfuleni to help restore capacity to failing water treatment works and stop the flow of raw sewage into the Vaal River, has been waiting for resources for more than 10 months.
“Although National Treasury has prepared a financial recovery plan for the municipality, its implementation has been dismal.”
According to the Gauteng City-Region Observatory’s (GCRO) 2017/2018 Quality of Life report, which measures satisfaction levels of Gauteng residents in various areas of life, Emfuleni’s financial problems are affecting basic services to residents and their satisfaction levels have dropped dramatically in the last two to three years.
The report also shows that Emfuleni’s refuse collection rate is at 20%, the lowest in Gauteng, and that 29% of residents have no access to stormwater facilities, the highest percentage in Gauteng.
“Emfuleni’s death spiral is testament to the ANC’s poor governance record, which continues to deprive residents of basic services, 25 years into democracy,” says Tlhokwe.
“The DA stands ready to fight for clean and accountable governance in Emfuleni that delivers reliable services to residents and builds one South Africa for all.”
