KwaZulu-Natal Premier's Working Group initiates financial sustainability efforts for Msunduzi Municipality
Image: Supplied.
Despite Msunduzi Local Municipality's denial that it failed to meet the Auditor-General's deadline for submission of financial statements, the intervention team assigned by KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli to probe the collapse of governance in the embattled municipality wants clarity.
The team, which is known as the Premier's Working Group (PMWG), is under the stewardship of former Finance MEC Ravi Pillay. The alleged breach by the municipality was raised by Umkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) in a statement issued on Tuesday, where it called for urgent action and consequence management against the nine municipalities for the breach. Msunduzi was among the list released by the MKP.
Reacting to the news, Pillay said despite the municipality disputing the MKP's statement, he will, however, meet the municipality and engage further on the matter.
'The PMWG will engage the municipality further and the matter will find expression in the financial sustainability work stream that will be set up soon,' said Pillay
The municipality in Pietermaritzburg is currently under the spotlight of the provincial government which last month was forced to intervene and appointed a seven-member team led by the former Finance MEC Ravi Pillay to fix governance issues in the municipality.
The municipality's spokesperson, Nontobeko Mkhize, denied that the municipality had outstanding financial statements, saying the delays were caused by an objection which was lodged by the municipality that has since been resolved, resulting in the tabling of the financial audit report in the council.
The PMWG, similar to the eThekwini Presidential Group, was appointed in February as part of the new Section 154 intervention measures following a report by Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) MEC Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi in October last year which said the municipality's governance was deteriorating. The group is expected to present its first report on Friday.
The municipality had been under administration for more than five years and to the surprise of the many people, including the opposition parties, it was lifted out of administration in April last year.
In a statement the MKP called on both Cogta and the Standing Committee on Public Accounts to take decisive decisions against the nine municipalities which the party said failed to submit their financial statements for auditing.
In the statement, the party said it was reacting to the Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke whom the party said expressed concerns over the nine municipalities' failure to submit the outstanding annual financial statements for the 2023/24 audit cycle.
The party said the delay by authorities in attending to this breach has resulted in an increase in poor service delivery in the poorest of communities.
[email protected]
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
6 hours ago
- IOL News
MK Party swats away invitation to join the GNU
MKP national spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela rejects ANC's suggestion that more parties should join the GNU, saying his party would not be part of a structure that involved the DA and President Cyril Ramaphosa. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers EXPANSION Some opposition parties prefer to remain on the opposition bench and have chosen to swat away the ANC's invitation into the Government of National Unity (GNU). One such party was The uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP). The Jacob Zuma-led MKP was unwilling to be part of the Cabinet that involved the DA and President Cyril Ramaphosa. However, the MKP said it was willing to hold discussions with the EFF and the ANC, without Ramaphosa's involvement, for the formation of the pro-black government. The MKP's national spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela, said this in reaction to the ANC's suggestion of adding more parties to the GNU. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ The ANC, whose spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri is yet to respond to a request for comment, announced in a statement released on August 6, that the party's National Executive Committee's ordinary meeting held between August 1 and 4 resolved to engage with its current GNU partners to broaden participation, 'strengthen the functioning of the GNU, and give full effect to the Statement of Intent'. However, the ANC cautioned that it would not allow opportunistic forces, which it did not name, to manipulate the GNU platform for narrow partisan ends. When asked if the MKP was considering ANC's suggestion, Ndhlela said: 'We cannot join the racists,' he said. 'Do you think we would join Steenhuisen and Helen Zille, who have told them (the ANC) categorically that they would never be in a GNU with MKP and EFF? So, where would they begin to bring us in?' he asked. He said his party was not interested in joining the GNU. While being part of the GNU, the DA has strongly opposed several recently passed policies, such as the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act (BELA)'s language and school admission clauses, the National Health Insurance Act, and the Land Expropriation Act. Ndhlela said that while the DA was part of the government, it was also playing the opposition role in Parliament and Cabinet. He suggested that predominantly black parties should exit form the government. 'We need the ANC, without Ramaphosa, the EFF, and MKP to sit and talk because if you look at the policy perspective, we are all aligned in terms of what we want for black people,' said Ndhlela. The MKP placed the condition that it should have an upper hand in the government. 'On top of that, there is no way that the president of the country, if there were to be those kinds of conversations, would come from the ANC, never, it cannot be. 'Not with the rot that is there. The president of the country must come from the MKP in those discussions, if they were to happen. 'There is no way that the ANC in its current state can lead the country as it has lost public trust,' said Ndhlela. ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said the ANC was trying to neutralise the opposition bench and that there was no significant role that his party would play in the already bloated Cabinet. He said ActionSA first rejected the ANC's invitation into the GNU after the general elections and during the heated debate over Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana's attempt to increase VAT. 'We said to the ANC that as long as they got 70% representation in the GNU, they don't need us. 'We don't want to be neutralised because (by joining the GNU) we will be compromising ourselves as we want to remain a constructive opposition in parliament,' he said. The DA and Freedom Front Plus were opposed to the expansion of the GNU. DA leader John Steenhuisen, the Agriculture minister, said this week that he did not believe expansion of the parties in the GNU would take the country forward. 'I think it is going to complicate things even further, (as) we already have 10 parties in the GNU,' said Steenhuisen. However, the United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa, the Defence and Military Veterans deputy minister, told the media yesterday that his party supported the expansion. 'There was no winner in the elections; the people mandated all political parties to find a way to run South Africa, hence the GNU today.
IOL News
12 hours ago
- IOL News
MKP rejects ANC's invitation to join the Government of National Unity
MKP national spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela rejects ANC's suggestion that more parties should join the GNU, saying his party would not be part of a structure that involved the DA and President Cyril Ramaphosa. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers Some opposition parties prefer to remain on the opposition bench as they flatly rejected the ANC's suggestion to invite them into the Government of National Unity (GNU). The uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) was unwilling to be part of the Cabinet that involved the DA and President Cyril Ramaphosa. However, the MKP said it was willing to hold discussions with the EFF and the ANC, without Ramaphosa's involvement, for the formation of the pro-black government. MKP national spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela said this in reaction to the ANC's suggestion of adding more parties to the GNU. The ANC, whose spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri is yet to respond to request for comment, announced in a statement released on August 6, that its National Executive Committee's ordinary meeting held between August 1 and 4 resolved to engage with its current GNU partners to broaden participation, 'strengthen the functioning of the GNU, and give full effect to the Statement of Intent'. However, the ANC cautioned that it would not allow opportunistic forces, which it did not name, to manipulate this GNU platform for narrow partisan ends. When asked if the MKP was considering ANC's suggestion, Ndhlela said: 'Do you see us being mad?' 'We cannot join the racists,' he said. He did not think that the ANC would dare to invite the MKP to join the GNU. 'Do you think we would join Steenhuisen and Helen Zille, who have told them (ANC) categorically that they would never be a GNU with MKP and EFF? So, where would they begin to bring us in?' he asked. He said his party was not interested in joining the GNU. While being part of the GNU, the DA has strongly opposed several recently passed policies, such as the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act (BELA)'s language and school admission clauses, the National Health Insurance Act, and the Land Expropriation Act. DA leader John Steenhuisen, the Agriculture minister, said this week that he did not believe expansion of the parties in the GNU would take the country forward. Ndhlela said that while the DA was part of the government, it was also playing the opposition role in Parliament and Cabinet. He suggested that predominantly black parties should form the government. 'We need the ANC, without Ramaphosa, the EFF, and MKP to sit and talk because if you look at the policy perspective, we are all aligned in terms of what we want for black people,' said Ndhlela. The MKP placed the condition that it should have an upper hand in the government. 'On top of that, there is no way that the president of the country, if there were to be those kinds of conversations, would not come from the ANC, never, it cannot be. 'Not with the rot that is there. The president of the country must come from the MKP in those discussions, if they were to happen. 'There is no way that the ANC in its current state can lead the country as it has lost public trust,' said Ndhlela. He was emphatic that his party would never join the GNU. 'We cannot have a conversation with the ANC while it is part of the GNU; we cannot have a conversation with the ANC while Ramaphosa is still the president. 'We are willing to sit across the table with them and listen to them. Those are the natural key conditions. Then they will be worthy of an ear,' said Ndhlela. ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said the ANC was trying to neutralise the opposition bench and that there was no significant role that his party would play in the already blotted Cabinet. He said ActionSA first rejected the ANC's invitation into the GNU after the general elections and during the heated debate over Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana's attempt to increase VAT. He said he was happy that the ANC had not invited his party to the GNU, as it had already been calling for the trimming of the Cabinet. 'We said to the ANC that as long as they got 70% representation in the GNU, they don't need us. 'We don't want to be neutralised because (by joining the GNU) we will be compromising ourselves as we want to remain a constructive opposition in parliament,' he said. He said the GNU would take away ActionSA's independence. 'They (ANC) want us to shield them in their infighting with the DA. 'Let them continue fighting with the DA and leave us alone as an effective constructive opposition,' said Mashaba. The DA and Freedom Front Plus were opposed to the expansion of the GNU. 'I think it is going to complicate things even further, (as) we already have 10 parties in the GNU,' said Steenhuisen. However, the United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa, the Defence and Military Veterans deputy minister, told the media on Tuesday morning that his party supported the expansion. 'There was no winner in the elections; the people mandated all political parties to find a way to run South Africa, hence the GNU today.
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
Urgent action needed for water quality in KwaZulu-Natal
KZN Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC, Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi has called upon the Mayor of uMkhanyakude to ensure that the gates of the municipality are opened. Image: Supplied by KZN Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs A REPORT released in the first half of 2025 has indicated that KwaZulu-Natal's drinking water was largely not suitable for human consumption. The 2023 Blue Drop Report showed that out of the 172 water supply systems in KZN, only three were Blue Drop certified, while 34 were performing poorly, and 21 were in a critical state. The results have prompted the portfolio committee of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs to engage with the department on the concerning state of the province's potable water. Marlaine Nair, the portfolio committee chairperson, said the matter required an urgent response. 'We will raise the matter with Cogta - water quality must be a priority,' Nair said in response to Blue Drop Reports revelations. Cogta KZN's spokesperson, Senzelwe Mzila, said their challenges are multifaceted, which included ailing infrastructure and budget limitations. Therefore, Cogta has committed to enforce the development and implementation of recommendations listed in the report to improve water access and quality standards in the province. Mzila said his department will also explore the potential for different municipalities to use wind turbines as an alternative energy source. Another challenge listed by Mzila was the shortage of water in KZN, which was due mostly to the lack of operations and maintenance of key infrastructure in the municipalities, which, according to him, had been deteriorating over the years due to various factors. 'To mitigate the growing water supply challenges, we will work closely with the provincial Treasury department and monitor municipal budgets to ensure a minimum of 8% allocation for operational and maintenance (O&M) costs,' he said. Mzila said what the department had found was that billions of rands are lost annually to non-revenue water in the province. According to him, this staggering figure underscores a critical challenge that was severely compromising water security for communities. 'As highlighted by the Minister of Water and Sanitation, the issue of non-revenue water is a national crisis, but its impact is particularly acute in KwaZulu-Natal. The province is already grappling with the pressures of population growth, climate change, and unequal distribution of water resources, and this is further burdened by this significant wastage,' he said.
