The National government is ramping up its efforts to tackle challenges in eThekwini Municipality, deploying multiple intervention strategies to unlock service delivery bottlenecks and restore stability to the City.
In a report presented during Thursday’s council meeting, Speaker Thabani Nyawose outlined at least four key interventions currently under way under section 154.
Some of these interventions cross over in the areas they are looking at, raising fears that this could be counter-productive and could lead to senior officials butting heads.
Recently, local government experts former Durban City manager Mike Sutcliffe and former top civil servant Cassius Lubisi were roped in to assist the municipality.
The appointment of these two experts was first proposed a few months ago, but was not implemented after ANC councillors objected to the process.
However, this changed after the IFP took over the running of the provincial government and the Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta).
Delivering his report, Nyawose detailed the extent of the interventions.
“On Thursday, June 27, 2024, Cogta, MEC Thulasizwe Buthelezi met the executive committee to advise on the implementation of a decision taken by (the) erstwhile KZN provincial executive council to assist the municipality as per provision of section 154 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.”
He said the provision indicates that the national and provincial governments, by legislative and other measures, must support and strengthen the capacity of municipalities to manage their own affairs, to exercise their powers and to perform their functions.
“Currently, the municipality is supported by other spheres in terms of the above section 154 provision, to improve its efficiency,” said the report.
He added that these include the National Treasury, which is working with DCM: Finance (CFO) and the finance team in monitoring expenditure of different grants allocated to the municipality to ensure 100% spending on the allocated grants, enabling the National Treasury to consider an increase on the said annual grants.
Assistance from the national water department working with DCM: Trading Services and the team on the water turnaround strategy introduced by the department is assisting the Water and Sanitation Unit with water challenges.
uMngeni Water is also assisting the municipality in monitoring and managing some of the municipality’s water treatment works.
“Recently, responding to the plight of business in eThekwini Municipality, the president of the Republic, Ramaphosa, introduced a national working group comprising national and provincial officials to work with the municipality in addressing raised matters that impact on business, assisting the municipality in ensuring that it attracts more business, this also as part of the District Development Model (DDM).”
Reacting to these interventions, opposition councillors said this intervention could undermine the work being done and leave the municipality in a worse position.
ActionSA councillor Zwakele Mncwango said that the number of interventions under way at the same time was already creating confusion.
“All these interventions could lead to a much worse situation, keeping in mind that these are different individuals with different mandates, all of them are there to sit and no one has the power to make decisions.
“The power still rests with the same person who is accused of failing in this, the City manager still signs off, that is why we have been saying section 154 will have no impact.
“At the end, this could leave the municipality in a worse position as it could lead to delays in procurement,” he said.
DA councillor Andre Beetge said the speaker, during the engagement with the Cogta MEC, and on other platforms, has been insistent that there has been assistance for the past two years since the storm.
“Given this supposed intervention or assistance since 2022, is that our debtors have increased to R31.9 billion, government debt is at R906 million, R556m being from province, R253m from Ingonyama, R87m by national and R237m by parastatals.
“Top 10 debtors total R1.7bn, 52.5% water loss and electricity above 10% benchmark, electricity budget 76% spent, collection at 93%, credit rating at AA in the long and A1+ in short.
“Safer cities spend almost R3m on irregular expenditure of supply and service of toilets and showers for the homeless which we found either not on site or not working during a site inspection on July 5,” Beetge said.
Patrick Pillay, leader of the Democratic Liberal Congress (DLC), said that the multi-pronged intervention is necessary so that service delivery will be seen to be done in all areas.
“The DLC welcomes these interventions,” Pillay added.
The Mercury