The mayor has dismissed allegations of the missing billions as reckless.
City of Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero has dismissed allegations that R4 billion vanished from the Joburg Water bank account.
The allegations were shared by, among others, DA Joburg mayoral candidate Helen Zille, who claimed the money had been allocated for water maintenance.
The R4 billion had allegedly been redirected from dealing with water challenges in the city.
Zille alleged that neither the mayor nor anyone in the city could explain how the money “vanished”.
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“We’ve learned that R4 billion that was aligned and set aside for water, suddenly it has vanished, it has been taken away. By who? The mayor doesn’t know. The first thing you have to understand as the mayor is the budget,” said Zille in a video shared by the DA.
Watch Zille speak on Joburg Water’s ‘missing’ R4 billion
“You must know the budget line item by line item, where the money is going. Because you cannot claim to be the mayor unless you have presented your plan to the voters, they have supported your plan, and then you implement it. Now, where has the R4 billion gone? The mayor does not know, no one else does.”
This comes as residents in parts of Joburg have been going without water, calling for the city to deliver the services it has promised.
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The mayor appeared before parliament’s portfolio committee on water and sanitation last week to answer questions on water challenges in Johannesburg and various interventions his government has placed to ensure that residents receive water.
‘No money is missing’ from Joburg Water account
Morero has dismissed the claims as “entirely baseless and reckless,” stating that they were meant to create unnecessary panic among residents and stakeholders.
“The mayor wishes to assure the public in the strongest possible terms that no funds have been lost. The city operates a well-governed, transparent and legally compliant financial system that has been in place for over two decades,” said the mayor on Saturday.
Morero said the city’s finances are managed under the model known as the iGoli 2002 delivery model. This model centrally procures a banking partner for the use by all the departments and municipal entities.
‘Sweeping’
“Each entity’s bank account is opened under the umbrella of the city and approved by the city manager, who is the designated accounting officer. All accounts follow a standard naming convention, such as ‘COJ Joburg Water’ and are linked to a central banking profile managed by Group Treasury,” explained Morero.
“A key feature of this arrangement is a financial process known as sweeping, a standard treasury practice used globally by large organisations and municipalities.
“It involves the automatic transfer of all available balances, whether positive or negative, from each entity’s bank account into the city’s primary bank account at the close of each business day. The following day, the funds are returned to each entity’s account in line with their financial requirements and operations.
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“The purpose of sweeping is not to remove or hide money, but to manage the city’s overall liquidity efficiency. This approach enables the city to optimise cash flow, reduce transaction fees, ensure that no excess funds remain idle in individual accounts, and make more strategic investment decisions that yield higher returns for the benefit of all residents. It also enhances financial control and mitigates risks associated with fraud, inconsistent investment practices, and fragmented financial oversight.”
Morero said funds transferred through the sweeping process remain fully traceable, auditable and secure.
