By Doreen Mokgolo
- Tshwane wastes R3.6 billion through poor spending while owing Eskom R6.76 billion.
- Mayor fires 67 officials and warns 31 others as part of cleanup plan to fix city’s money troubles.
The City of Tshwane has wasted R3.6 billion of taxpayers’ money through poor spending, leading to bad audit results for the second year in a row.
Mayor Nasiphi Moya revealed this during her 100 days in office report on Tuesday. She said the city’s financial troubles meant it couldn’t properly deliver basic services to residents.
“When we took office, the debt stood at over R11 billion, with R6.76 billion owed to Eskom alone,” she said.
The city’s problems were flagged by the Auditor-General South Africa, which found that officials weren’t being punished for wrongdoing. This led to 180 investigations and 129 possible disciplinary cases against workers.
The city took action by firing 67 officials and giving final warnings to 31 others. They also sent 39 cases for criminal charges and sought to recover money in 48 cases.
Moya said the city needs R65 billion over 10 years to fix everything but only has R2.3 billion per year to spend.
“The demand for capital investment over the next decade exceeds R65 billion, yet the City’s current annual capital budget is only R2.3 billion,” she said.
She found the city in a mess, with dirty streets and broken infrastructure. Poor areas suffered the most, while wealthy suburbs received better services.
“It was also plagued by chronic underinvestment in repairs and maintenance, which led to the City’s ageing infrastructure being vulnerable to frequent breakdowns,” she said.
To fix things, Moya wants to collect R4 billion monthly from residents who owe money. So far, they’re getting R3.3 billion per month, which is R500 million more than expected.
“We set a target of achieving 95% actual readings within our first 100 days, but we managed to reach 90% within this period,” she said.
The mayor is also cracking down on lawbreakers. “Those cars have been impounded for not having permits, and threatening to take us to court, they are welcome to do so, we will respond accordingly,” she said.
Pictured above: Mayor Nasiphi Moya.
Source: Supplied
