AG’s report echoes AfriForum’s concern about the state of municipalities
Only 34 of the 257 municipalities in South Africa received clean audits from the Auditor General (AG) for the 2022/23 financial year – this is a mere 13%. According to AfriForum, this report only emphasises what AfriForum has been saying for years – municipal governance has collapsed as a result of mismanagement and a lack of knowledge. The civil rights organisation is once again calling on municipalities to join hands and find solutions to pressing issues together.
Furthermore, only 45 municipalities have shown an improvement, and 36 municipalities have deteriorated since the 2020/21 audit. The AG placed particular emphasis on the 77 municipalities that are in a cycle of unqualified audit opinions and do not make an effort to receive a cleaner audit, while communities have to cope without basic service delivery. The Ngwathe Local Municipality was particularly identified in the AG report. Over the past few years, AfriForum has laid numerous complaints against Ngwathe municipality, especially regarding their inability to provide clean, running water to communities.
Although the AG report confirms that misappropriation, corrupt tender processes, and improper collection mechanisms cripple municipalities financially, AfriForum believes that the problem extends beyond municipalities. According to AfriForum, the problem extends to provincial and national departments such as the Department of Cooperative Government and Traditional Affairs and the National and Provincial Treasurers.
“This report paints a dark picture of the daily realities of many towns where the taps are dry, the roads are inaccessible and infrastructure is in tatters while municipal officials just stand idly by or shrug their shoulders,” says Deidré Steffens, advisor for Local Government Affairs at AfriForum. “It is long overdue for municipalities to join hands with civic organisations that want to help. AfriForum has offered its help to struggling municipalities several times and the AG’s report makes it clear that municipalities simply can no longer afford to turn down any offer of help.”
Means of intervention as set out in section 139 of the Constitution makes provisions for provincial governments to intervene in collapsing municipalities, but so far there have been few cases of successful intervention. “We do however see that officials are forcing these interventions just to further play a political power game in municipalities.”
The Minister of Cooperative Government and Traditional Affairs, Velenkosini Hlabisa, announced today that he will present a plan within 21 days to turn around dysfunctional municipalities. AfriForum welcomes Hlabisa’s zeal, but the organisation warns the minister that plans on paper are worthless if they are never implemented.
“The AG, Hlabisa and the Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, must also put their heads together and decide how they are going to hold municipal officials accountable who abuse their power and manage their municipalities in the ground accountable. This will also contribute to preventing further mismanagement, misappropriation, and corruption in municipalities,” concludes Steffens.
