The DA has noted the residents’ high level of dissatisfaction with the persistent billing problems in the Mogale City Municipality.
The municipality’s failure to resolve a three-year billing stalemate and to communicate effectively with account-holders has caused residents to be highly critical of the council prior to the Local Government elections. Idle promises are made to frustrated residents who repeatedly visit the Rates Hall. Very few of these billing issues are ever resolved.
“Citizens have become very critical of the municipality, which needs a wake-up call – and the elections may achieve exactly that,” the statement from the local DA’s office reads.
“The experience of the DA will be the very catalyst needed across all Mogale’s municipal departments, in particular billing.”
What led to the collapse of the financial system was the municipality’s poor performance at integrating systems from initially flawed supply chain management processes and the subsequent appointment of new service providers to replace the previously effective system.
“Residents’ frustration is mounting. The DA is taking action by manning petition tables at shopping centres in most wards across Mogale City on Saturday, 16 July. The petition will be part of the DA’s programme of action which will culminate in a submission to the Public Protector.”
The petition states the following:
“In terms of municipal bylaws, we, the residents of Mogale City, petition the Executive Mayor and the Municipal Manager to rectify the current dysfunctional IFMS system and/ or replace it with an efficient system. We further petition that maladministration of interdepartmental structures be resolved between Water and Finance to ensure correct billing to the benefit of residents.”
This petition will be available in the following wards on Saturday 16 July between 9am and noon:
Monument, Rant-en-Dal, Krugersdorp North, Pinehaven, Krugersdorp West, Featherbrook/ Ruimsig, Luipaardsvlei, Noordheuwel and Mindalore.
Spokesperson of the Mogale City Municipality, Nkosana Zali, responded to the local DA’s finance spokesperson, Dennis Pretorius’ statement on Mogale’s countless excuses for the failing system, with the following:
“The municipality has drastically reduced billing queries since introduction of the new system. Reduction does not mean total elimination, but we are confident that we have made progress in addressing matters that would have come with teething of the new system. As a councillor involved in the processes that deal with the system, our so-called failure is shared failure not absolving Pretorius or any of the councillors and officials in our system.”
To read his full response, click here.
