The DA has submitted a motion calling for a review of the Lekwa Local Municipality wage bill, this after the recent downgrading of the municipality from Grade 4 to Grade 3. We believe that it only makes sense to also lower the operational costs of the municipality. Failure to do so will hinder service delivery.
For the month of December 2024, a month before the downgrade, we found that Lekwa paid just over R167 million towards employee related costs. This amounted to 21.6% of the total revenue that was generated during this same period.
The DA finds it concerning that Lekwa incurred a deficit of more than R70 million during this period. This made it impossible for the municipality to deliver on various service delivery related projects, like the ones aimed at addressing water shortages.
Presently, middle management in Lekwa get a transport allowance which amounts to 40% of their salaries. However, despite the above, they still claim and get paid for kilometres that they travel. Whereas senior managers recently requested for a waiver of the Upper Limits of Total Remuneration Packages Payable to Municipal Managers and Managers Directly Accountable to Municipal Managers. This is one example of the financial mismanagement in Lekwa.
In this regard, senior managers requested to be paid at the maximum point (R1.6 million), instead of the minimum point (R1 million), despite being rejected by the MEC of CoGHSTA, Speedy Mashilo.
Being cognisant of the fact that this municipality incurred a deficit of R664 million during the 2022/2023 financial year, it cannot be that such decisions would be in the best interest of the residents of Lekwa.