Financial stability key for Joburg metro success – MMC Matongo

The newly appointed City of Joburg member of the mayoral committee for finance, Jolidee Matongo, has vowed to prioritise the city’s financial stability, economic growth and job creation.

Yesterday Matongo made no promises, but stressed that attracting investment to the city would be top of the list as that was the best way to create jobs.

According to a preliminary report, he said the city was losing R300 million revenue monthly because several businesses were paying residential rates instead of business rates on properties.

“We are going to ensure that ratepayers are categorised and billed correctly.

“A lot of people in affluent areas are not paying. Those who can pay must pay and those who cannot must come forward with the necessary documents to be registered in the indigent programme,” he said.

Matongo commended former Democratic Alliance mayor Herman Mashaba for his revenue collection strategies. These, he said, had made a very positive contribution to the city’s coffers.

He also praised Mashaba’s regionalisation of services, saying this had contributed to smoother revenue collection and residents’ problems being solved timeously.

The city had also benefitted from the increases in property rates and tariffs during Mashaba’s tenure.

However, he was concerned about the inconsistency of revenue collection as a large number of people did not pay rates due to economic pressures and unemployment. “The amount collected is less than the amount billed for rates,” he pointed out.

While the city’s bank balance looked good at R5.3 billion currently, it meant there had been some lapses in service delivery and many service providers had not been paid on time, he added.

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