Press Statement by: Irene Brussow – DA Caucus Leader in Mkhondo Local Municipality
DA in Mkhondo urges accountability as Public Protector points out irregularities in Strategic Workshop trip
The DA in Mkhondo is patiently waiting for the municipality to act on the Public Protector’s recommendation and develop a system of delegation that will maximise administrative and operational efficiency.
This comes after the Public Protector’s office released a report detailing how the municipality ignored council regulations and Supply Chain Management regulations for their 2022 Strategic Planning Workshop held in Durban.
At the time, the municipality communicated that the workshop was meant to provide forward thinking at local governance, enable the municipality to create plans to meet the unique needs of communities and provide residents with essential services.
However, the DA highlighted that service delivery in the municipality was at an all time low. Therefore, taking this workshop to Durban instead of finding a local venue was illogical. As a result, the DA caucus in Mkhondo decided against partaking in this workshop.
Notably, a council resolved that the General Manager of Development & Planning, was tasked with recalculating the expenses of the Strategic Planning Workshop and find a less expensive place to hold the strategic planning. However, this was not carried out as per the council resolution.
This goes to show that the municipality disregarded Section 160(1) of the Constitution which states that a Municipal Council makes decisions concerning the exercise of all the powers and the performance of all the functions of the municipality.
Furthermore, the municipality’s failure to refer this matter back to council for consideration and further deliberation contravened Section 160 of the Constitution and Rule 12(4) of the Standing Rules and Orders of Council which required the Municipal Council to exercise a discretion and approve the budget on the holding of the Strategic Planning Workshop.
The Public Protector’s report also indicates that the municipality’s attendance register for this workshop shows that only 37 delegates attended the Strategic Planning Workshop. This is in contrast to a quotation stating that the workshop was planned for 68 delegates. The quotation was submitted by a company outsourced by the municipality to handle booking arrangements.
Overall, the Public Protector found that, lack of evidence to justify the chosen venue, combined with the additional costs incurred, resulted in expenditure that was neither economical nor adequately controlled.
The DA will ensure that the municipality capacitates municipal officials on the SCM and Municipal Council resolutions and procedures to avoid a recurrence of a similar incident. It cannot be business as usual while officials flouted the Municipal Structures Act and the Municipal Financial Management Act.