MBOMBELA – While households still owe Mbombela Local Municipality (MLM) millions, it remains doubtful how the recently embarked upon Lishumi eShumini Rand for Rand payment-incentive scheme has helped it collect revenue.
Of the total R388 million owed to MLM, the debt of households contributed R280 million. Of the total, it is “doubtful whether the municipality will be able to collect R267 million”, debt older than 90 days, according to the first-quarter financials.
At the end of the 2012/13 financial year, the municipality had receivables such as property rates and taxes as well as outstanding water bills totalling R259,6 million owed to it, noting that the recoverability of these amounts were “doubtful”.
At the end of MLM’s first quarter on September 30 the payment levels on received levies stood at 97 per cent for the Mbombela (formerly Nelspruit) area, 90,1 per cent for Hazyview, 87,2 per cent in White River and 73 per cent in KaMagugu and Tekwane. However, KaBokweni’s payment rate stood at only 30 per cent and KaNyamazane’s on 29,2 per cent.
A provision of doubtful debt amounting to R346 million has already been charged on the operating expenditure of the previous financial years. In the first quarter MLM targeted 94 per cent collection rate and achieved 89 per cent on current accounts.
Lishumi eShumini offered debtors the opportunity to come to a repayment agreement with the municipality and to have half their debt written off until the end of October, in an attempt to collect at least some of the money owed to it.
MLM spokesman, Mr Joseph Ngala did not comment on how many applications for the scheme had been received, nor how much money was expected to be collected.
