Richards Bay residents urge city to prioritise infrastructure

Richards Bay residents shared their frustrations about power cuts, water supply interruptions and the state of public facilities during the uMhlathuze Municipality’s roadshow, held last week.

Following a presentation on the draft budget for the next three years, residents took the opportunity to express concerns about the negative impact recent blackouts have had on households and businesses, urging the municipality to prioritise infrastructure that will improve service delivery.

In response, Municipal Manager, Lulamile Mapholoba said: ‘One of the challenges is aging infrastructure, and we also have an issue with illegal connectivity, particularly around electricity and water.

‘The other challenge is population growth. Being an industrial area, there are quite a number of people flocking into the city to look for job opportunities.’

He also cited poor planning, fraud and corruption, in some areas, as challenges to the provision of services.

‘If you look at the budget the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) has presented, we are putting together plans that will take the city to greater heights, such as infrastructure refurbishment and replacement of some transformers and water pipes,’ said Mapholoba.

Budget plans for next three years

Delivering the draft budget, the municipality’s CFO, Mxolisi Kunene, said the city has set a R4.7-billion budget for the 2021/22 financial year.

‘For the 2022/23 financial year we are looking at a R4.8 billion budget and, in the last year, the budget is set at R5.1-billion,’ said Kunene.

‘This three-year budget is a deficit budget, which is not an acceptable budget.

‘But we observed the sluggish economy, the financial difficulties experienced by businesses and individual households and set our projections in line with these challenges.

‘We are fortunate to have built up some reserves over the years to try and tuck in this deficit,’ he said. ‘However, we are hoping to see a more positive change in the economy.’

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