Is GTM in the red zone of collapse?
A survey by a national news outlet has listed four of the five local municipalities in the Mopani district, including Greater Tzaneen (GTM), Maruleng, Ba-phalaborwa and Greater Letaba, as being in the danger zone of being on the “brink of collapse”.
The survey was published on Monday on News24 and claims that these four municipalities are part of 43 other local authorities identified.It says that data suggests that the “crisis in the frontline of service delivery is likely to deepen”. These 43 municipalities are over and above the 87 already red-flagged by government, the survey reads. Spokesperson for the Mopani District Municipality, Odas Ngobeni, responded on the survey by saying that local government is not without its challenges.
“That is why it is important for everyone (at the level of civil society) to play a part. “We need to have citizens paying for the services rendered at this level, so that we are able to have financial stable municipalities that maintain their infrastructure, consistently,” Ngobeni said. “All of the municipalities flagged in the index have been recording significant improvements in the audit outcome.
“All four municipalities have received unqualified audit opinions in the latest report by the auditor-general, and their spending on infrastructure grants are commendable. “We need to acknowledge the need for accountable leadership at the level of local government, but also proceed to advocate for a culture of active citizenry where our communities play a role on issues of governance for us to adequately respond to the challenges faced by this sphere of government,” he concluded.
Also read: Municipality is hopelessly insolvent, says DA Councillor
Neville Ndlala, spokesperson of GTM said the survey is based on outdated data from three years ago and that the municipality has made significant improvement since then.He said that the municipality spends less than 30% on salaries in their budget. He acknowledged that on maintenance issues the municipality is still lagging behind at 4.8% of the budget. Accountability has also improved significantly, he said.
On Tuesday, 21 October, GTM’s mayor, Maripe Mangena, held a media briefing giving a run-down of projects that have been finished in the five years in office. He said 12 of the 16 road projects were completed, cemetries have been upgraded, two new taxi ranks were built, two sports stadiums upgraded and one new sport centre built. He also commented on the replacement of transformers and electricity supply to 4000 households in the municipal area, amongst others.
