Parliament, Friday, 28 February 2025 – The Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs called for strict consequence management, investigations, and audits in Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality on Thursday.
The committee ended its last day of oversight in the Free State with a visit to Maluti-a-Phofung to interrogate the municipality's situation. This was followed by a community meeting to engage residents on their challenges.
The committee heard about various issues plaguing the municipality, including huge debt to Eskom, inability to collect revenue and an over-reliance on government grants, weak financial systems and irregularities in financial and corporate management, the employment of unqualified people leading to a bloated organogram, electricity supply issues and illegal connections.
Other issues flagged include the poor performance of its entity, Maluti Water, in the provision of water, the poor maintenance of water and other infrastructure, and the poor management of roads and potholes, all of which affect service delivery. The committee also heard that the municipality is bankrupt with a deficit of R1.5 billion and will take an estimated 20 years to balance its books.
The committee found that the long-term instability plaguing the municipality was due to political instability that ultimately affected the administration, causing breakdowns of various governance systems. The committee believed this had been demonstrated in various disclaimers by the Auditor-General. This then caused dissatisfaction over service delivery among communities.
Another concern for the committee was that the challenges extended beyond financial irregularities or lack of financial recording and management but also included issues raised about irregularities in human resources management, resulting in an unaffordable wage bill that drains municipal resources. The committee called for an audit of the staff establishment and to deal with allegations of nepotism and the employment of extra staff not on the organogram.
Although some municipal leaders believe that this municipality has improved from its previous history of devastation, the committee believes that to rebuild public confidence, a strong programme is still needed to rebuild the governance structures that have been badly eroded by maladministration and corruption, which resulted in poor service delivery in Maluti. The committee welcomed the strong support from provincial and national governments, which was demonstrated by including Maluti amongst the top ten worst municipalities for revival.
Members also called for the municipality to stick to the plan to repay its Eskom debt and noted that the electricity supply should be continued and strengthened by investing in smart electricity meters and dealing with illegal connections.
In addition, the committee believes a strong culture of accountability can only be entrenched through strong consequence management, initially focussing on all officials implicated in corrupt activities and those responsible for the disclaimer outcomes. The MPAC was urged to move speedily to investigate the unauthorised, irregular, fruitless, and wasteful expenditure as expected in municipal policy. The committee also asked the municipality to share the reports on corruption and irregularities emanating from Special Investigating Unit investigations along with the recommendations and outline what actions have been taken against officials implicated.
The committee stated that the major focus should be on a post-audit action plan to address the issues identified by the AG. It was stressed that the audit outcomes reflect on the entire municipality's leadership and staff. As such, the speaker, the mayor and the entire municipal political and administrative leadership are accountable and must take responsibility for audit outcomes and service delivery.
The committee noted the tension between the mayor and the speaker. The committee was also concerned about counter-accusations and allegations between the mayor, the speaker, and the municipal manager, which it believes must be urgently investigated. The committee expressed concern regarding the impact this tension has on the smooth running of the municipality, particularly if it is combined with acrimonious debates amongst different parties, as often reported in the media. All allegations will be referred to the minister for investigation, for which strong action must be taken.
“These allegations will need to be investigated,” said committee Chairperson Dr Zweli Mkhize, noting the seriousness of the accusations and counter-accusations between officials and leaders within the municipality.
The committee also noted that the municipality has focused on refuse removal and embarked on a cleaning programme to improve environmental cleanliness, which has been welcomed in the community. However, the committee stressed that the allegations about expenditure on this and accusations of officials’ involvement in contracts must be probed.
The committee also called on the municipality’s leadership and officials to do everything to remedy the negative image of the municipality in the eyes of the public by ensuring effective service delivery, particularly dealing with issues of human settlements, road repairs and other municipal services. The committee also noted concerns from traditional leaders who feel excluded in participating in the municipality and this should be addressed. These issues must be referred to the MEC for COGTA, the Speaker and the national Minister of COGTA.
“We believe that a lot of support is needed from the provincial and national government to rebuild the entire system of governance, financial management and administration so that the municipality can get back to performing as expected by the community,” the Chairperson said.
There was also an important reminder for officials and office bearers at the municipality. “We just want to say to you, as the councillors and the municipal manager, that you, as local government, are closest to the people, so service delivery to our people depends on you. So, we not only expect consciousness of your responsibilities but also a display of commitment concerning services that must be rendered to our people,” said Dr Mkhize.
“We believe it is our role as the committee to revive that understanding and consciousness that whatever you do does not matter if people do not feel like you are exercising the necessary diligence to deliver the service that is our major concern.”
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON COGTA, DR ZWELI MKHIZE.
For media enquiries, please contact the committee’s media officer:
Name: Alicestine October (Ms)
Cell: 083 665 4345
E-mail: aoctober@parliament.gov.za
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