DEAR Editor:
The various commissions currently underway in the country are revealing the devastation wrought on our economy by corrupt officials and politicians who sought to plunder public resources. It begs the question about how these circumstances were allowed to flourish in our democracy. How was it possible for so many within our government, or connected to those in power, to operate with such impunity?
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The answer has much to do with accountability, or rather the lack thereof, and the ability of our elected representatives to diligently perform the function of OVERSIGHT. Where there is no rigorous oversight there will not be accountability, and service delivery will deteriorate to poor performance and inevitably to malperformance. At local level, the primary role of councillors is that of oversight. It allows elected representatives to monitor performance and to intervene when performance falls, or worse, when it becomes corrupted. We are facing a situation in Umdoni that will ultimately lead to service breakdown and the loss of funds if it is not arrested. We are already experiencing high levels of infrastructure neglect, increased expenditure and virtually no value for money, for the ratepayers and taxpayers that fund the municipality. The fact is that oversight has been compromised through lapses and strategies intended to demonstrate to all that the ANC is still in charge, despite declined political support at the elections. These strategies include;
• The closing of council committees to the public, media and other councillors.
• Non-adherence to the rules of debate in order to suppress constructive input or questions that do not come from the majority party.
• Poor standards of reporting and the irregular changing of agendas.
• Instructions to staff that they must deny councillors access to important information.
• Non-response to communication and non-attendance at appointments.
• Poor attendance at meetings by ANC councillors.
• The compilation of budgets without due diligence and supporting detail.
• The absence of proper planning to ensure accountability through time, place and resource allocation details.
Under these circumstances Umdoni has become a closed shop. The majority party has unfettered control over our public funds and resources, and are doing everything possible to ensure that no one can challenge the status quo.
The irony in this strategy is that it will ultimately be its own undoing. But what price do we pay while those in power continue to believe they are untouchable? Eskom’s demise has shown us just how costly a lack of robust oversight can be. A question was recently put to me by a troubled ANC supporter “What business does the ANC have removing transparency from the processes of government?” It was a sobering statement that inspired me to write this letter. I hope that all supporters of the ANC will read it and understand why we can only succeed as a nation and a municipality, when we accept that serving citizens must always take precedence over serving party domination.
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