Nkomazi Local Municipality salaries paid twice
An error by officials of the Nkomazi Local Municipality's (NLM) finance department resulted in workers getting paid their salaries twice this month.
MALALANE – The municipality paid them on October 15, instead of October 25 as is usual.
When they were not paid again on the correct payday 10 days later, the workers shut down all water treatment plants and other municipal services.
The council paid them again to contain the service delivery chaos.
Now NLM wants to recover the money before the end of the 2019/20 financial year at the end of June next year. It has suggested deducting 20 per cent from the employees’ salaries every month for five months, but the workers are having none of it.
Municipality spokesman, Cyril Ripinga confirmed that an employee made a blunder by paying salaries instead of travel allowances on October 15.
NLM paid R18 million, and another R18 million on October 25.
“It was a genuine mistake by the official,” Ripinga said. “We phoned the bank not to release the money after realising the mistake, but it went ahead and paid. We will deduct the money from their salaries.”
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An insider in the municipality management said most of the workers would not be able to refund NLM, because they were generally in debt.
“The fact of the matter is that even though the first payment was a mistake, council should not have agreed to pay the second time as this was in contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act,” said the insider.
Mpumalanga SA Municipal Workers Union secretary, Saul Simelane said the union’s worry was that the council had imposed a blanket 20 per cent deduction without considering the affordability and circumstances of each employee.
He added that the matter called for an investigation, as it smacked of malfeasance.
“This error must be accounted for. It must be investigated, even if this was the first time it had happened or not. The council must give clarity.”
NLM works on a shoestring R1,1 billion annual budget, 70 per cent of which comes from the national fiscus.
Its revenue collection rate is low, as only businesses and residents in Malalane, Hectorspruit and Komatipoort can afford rates and taxes.
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