GRAAFF-REINET NEWS - Mayor of the Dr Beyers Naudé Municipality, Deon de Vos, recently echoed his statement of nearly four months ago that the municipality is financially troubled.
On Wednesday 24 July, De Vos said, "we don't have money. We as local government must be honest about our challenges. We can't make promises; we can't keep up."
This time, at a Municipal and Graaff-Reinet Community stakeholder meeting on Wednesday 9 October, De Vos said, "[the municipality] experiences severe financial constraints." With the municipal manager, Dr Eddie Rankwana to his right, he acknowledged that the municipality is not sustainable to meet its month-to-month commitments.
De Vos blamed long outstanding creditors and litigation cases, mainly from the former Ikwezi Local Municipality, as two of the reasons for the municipality's financial woes.
The Ikwezi Local Municipality was an administrative area in the Sarah Baartman District Municipality, which merged into the larger Dr Beyers Naudé Local Municipality after municipal elections in 2016.
Insufficient revenue billed or collected, faulty water meters and unsustainable salary bills due to amalgamation, were also on the mayor's list of things to blame.
On financial challenges towards sustainability, De Vos acknowledged that a huge staff component is putting a strain on the municipality's available resources.
"We had to implement a process of equalisation of salaries, to a cost of R18,5 million, with only R6 million covered by the amalgamation grant," he added.
Ineffective service delivery due to the vastness of the area and the lack of resources, due to a dilapidated fleet, are also financial challenges, according to De Vos.
On the issue of service delivery, he pointed out waste management as one of the most serious challenges.
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