DA welcomes progress made by the Multi-Party Coalition following COGTA report recognising Ekurhuleni as the only stable Metro in Gauteng
by Cllr. Brandon Pretorius — DA Deputy Chief Whip in Ekurhuleni
Date: 26 April 2022
Release: Immediate
Type: Media statement
The Democratic Alliance (DA) applauds the Multi-Party Coalition for the stellar work they have done to ensure that Ekurhuleni is considered the only stable Metro in Gauteng.
This was revealed by the MEC for Cooperative Governance Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Lebogang Maile, during a briefing on the state of municipalities in the Province on the 25th of April 2022. This recognition points toward the progress made by the Multi-Party Coalition, which took over from the ANC-led Coalition following the last year’s Local Government Election.
Stability — as understood by COGTA takes into account a number of issues, namely: financial performance, Eskom and Rand Water, Provincial government debt to municipalities, audit outcomes, governance and institutional stability and service delivery.
In terms of financial performance, Ekurhuleni, along with Merafong and DA-led Midvaal, was one of the standout Metros in the sense that it did not incur any unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure for the 2020/21 financial year. In addition, Ekurhuleni has achieved clean audit outcomes from the Auditor General for the past two financial years, which has contributed to the Metro’s stable outlook.
Ekurhuleni has also been deemed stable in terms of governance and institutional stability, which takes into account the amount of vacancy rate for senior municipal managers. With a provincial average of 30% vacancies, Ekurhuleni was the only municipality deemed stable by the report illustrating the Multi-Party Coalition’s commitment to sound and coherent governance practise.
Maile, flagged challenges around service delivery across the province as a result of high electricity costs due to illegal connections, the destruction of underground electrical infrastructure, as well as the lack of maintenance of ageing infrastructure. He also raised concerns over illegal dumping, water losses and housing shortages.
Ekurhuleni is not immune to these challenges and is committed to tackling them head-on through the Multi-Party Coalition’s “back to basics” approach to service delivery. This approach is centred on creating a stable financial base upon which the City can expand the provision of services in communities. Progress in this regard has been evident through the Metro’s stable financial outlook through the GCR credit rating agency, which is indicative of a return to financial stability and responsible expenditure.
The DA encourages the Multi-Party Coalition to continue making strides in ensuring financial sustainability with the objective of improving service delivery for the City’s residents.
Cllr. Brandon Pretorius
DA Deputy Chief Whip in Ekurhuleni
