No DA public representative will take part in eThekwini’s four upcoming budget hearings.
At the last full council sitting on 19 April, eThekwini’s draft budget for the upcoming financial year was tabled but council Speaker Logie Naidoo refused to allow councillors to debate it as it had yet to go for public consultation.
Now the city has advertised two upcoming budget hearings – one on 22 April at 10am at Hammersdale’s Mpumalanga’s Stadium and the other, two days later at the same time but at Curries Fountain. Each hearing will host 41 various wards respectively.
According to Zwakele Mncwango, DA eThekwini caucus leader, the stadiums where both these hearings have been scheduled to take place are not conducive for budget debates.
“It also makes absolutely no sense to group 41 different wards together when each area has its own specific needs and is affected by the budget in its own way. Having budget hearings at 10am during the week is a deliberate attempt to exclude many city residents who will either be at work or searching for employment,”said Mncwango.
He said it is also highly suspicious that eThekwini’s communications department had been tasked with arranging entertainment with programme directors, a choir, pastor, cheerleaders, a brass band, a parade with bikers, robots, traditional music groups, t-shirts and hand-held placards etc for the hearings. Past budget hearings never necessitated such.
“These upcoming budget hearings appear to be more like campaigning tools and rallies for the ANC-led council. The DA therefore cannot consciously take part in these hearings as they appear to be designed to systematically exclude a large section of city residents who will not be able to practice their constitutional right of airing their views or concerns over the budget,” added Mncwango.
