Opposition party said Treasury's decision reflects poor governance in Limpopo's municipalities
National Treasury briefed the media on the decision to withhold equitable share transfers to 69 municipalities. Picture: GCIS
National Treasury this week froze the equitable share transfers to municipalities, including four in Limpopo, with some in the province blaming the ANC-led government and its management style.
The affected municipalities in Limpopo are Musina, Thabazimbi, Fetakgomo/Tubatse and Mopani.
Treasury withholds billions
On Wednesday, National Treasury said it has withheld R13.5 billion in equitable share transfers from 69 defaulting municipalities that were flagged for financial mismanagement and unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
Treasury said it withheld the transfers to promote fiscal discipline and ensure that public money is properly managed. It also wants municipal officials and office-bearers to be held accountable where necessary.
On Friday, the Bolsheviks Party of South Africa (BPSA) said Treasury’s decision is concerning as the affected councils already have huge backlogs in delivering services to their communities.
It added that it reflects poor governance in Limpopo’s municipalities.
“This development is a serious warning about the state of financial governance in Limpopo local government. It reflects persistent failures in financial management, accountability and compliance that have repeatedly been highlighted through oversight processes and audit findings,” the party’s general secretary Seun Mogotji told The Citizen on Friday.
‘Poor leadership’ blamed
Mogotji said communities have endured deteriorating infrastructure, unreliable service delivery, mounting financial instability and growing public frustration for years.
“The BPSA believes that these recurring failures are the consequence of poor leadership, weak accountability and a lack of political will to address governance shortcomings.”
The party said there needs to be accountability in government and that the responsible officials must face consequences.
“Accountability must replace impunity. Public officials entrusted with managing municipal finances must be held accountable where there is evidence of misconduct, negligence or non-compliance with the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) and other applicable legislation.
“Consequences must apply equally to political office-bearers and senior administrators who fail in their legal responsibilities; communities must not pay the price. While fiscal discipline and lawful financial management are essential, ordinary residents must not become victims of governance failures.”
Essential services
Mogotji said municipalities must ensure that essential services continue and that vulnerable communities are protected from the consequences of administrative and financial mismanagement.
He said the withholding of equitable share allocations should serve as a catalyst to restore financial discipline, ethical leadership and transparent governance. He added that temporary interventions are not enough.
“Sustainable change requires ethical, accountable and people-centred leadership. The people of Limpopo deserve municipalities that prioritise service delivery, responsible financial management and the public interest above political patronage. The era of impunity must come to an end. The people deserve municipalities that work for the people – not for political elites.”
