3 days ago
Opposition accuses local municipality mayor of using budget address to garner support for ANC
Fetakgomo Tubatse mayor Eddy Maila announced plans to improve roads and increase revenue collection.
A R1.3 billion infrastructure development budget in the mining-rich Fetakgomo Tubatse municipality in Limpopo has been unveiled that is billed to increase municipal revenue collection, harvest good audit opinions from the Auditor General of South Africa and improve the lives of ordinary people.
Mayor Eddy Maila outlined the plans during the state of the local municipality address at Ga-Motodi Sports Complex outside Praktiseer in Burgersfort on Thursday.
Maila hails local municipality's achievements
Addressing the crowd at the event, the mayor said when his council was inaugurated in November 2021, it took a decision to begin to spend its conditional grants for their intended purposes and within the stipulated time.
'We are proud to report that we have been consistently spending our conditional grants to the letter. We have also ensured that no money is returned to the Treasury due to poor planning and non-spending,' he said.
Maila said the Fetakgomo Tubatse municipality was recently given two awards. The first was for being among the six councils in Limpopo that did not incur fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
'This is an indication that our municipal funds are utilised efficiently,' he said.
The second award was for receiving an unqualified audit opinion for three consecutive financial years and spending 100% of its conditional grants.
'Our mission, however, is to attain a clean audit opinion from the office of the Auditor General of South Africa and it is doable because all our efforts are now channelled towards that objective.'
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In 2023, the mayor said the Fetakgomo Tubatse municipal council approved the City Development Strategy (Vision 2043) as a blueprint to pave the way for turning Burgersfort town into a city.
He singled out the construction of roads, fixing potholes, improving education, good revenue collection and reliable water supply in all the wards as key goals to achieve this.
'This municipality has invested resources towards the construction of roads in rural areas. We can report with confidence that our communities are traversing with ease where roads have been constructed.'
Construction of roads
For the 2024/2025 financial year, Maila said the municipality received an allocation of R127 million under the municipal infrastructure grant.
'On 26 August 2024, we handed over the contractor for the construction of Maepa access road at Ward 1. The four-kilometre road is set to bring much change to the community in terms of mobility. The village has the potential for farming and the road will enhance economic activities and it now stands at 80% completion,' he said.
The mayor further said contractors were also assigned to pave the 2.8 kilometre Dresden access road. He said the community had been struggling with access during rainy seasons, especially children, who could thus not attend school. Maila said the project is 70% complete.
He also listed other roads that have been improved.
'The 2.5km Magakala access road project has been completed. The 1.4km Magakala access road is also complete and the road has a new bridge connecting two villages. The Mashung access road is also complete and waiting to be handed over to the community of Ward 36.
'The Mashung access is also nearing completion. The Appiesdoring to Manoke project has now changed the face of Ga-Manoke village and was officially handed over to the community,' he said.
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Other projects are at Mareseleng, where members of the community were struggling to access other areas during the rainy season as the low-lying bridge was often flooded by water.
Maila praised Sekhukhune district municipality mayor Mina Bahula for her 'sterling work' in ensuring water flows in taps around the town and communities of Burgersfort. He also praised the ANC Sekhukhune regional secretary, Mathope Tala, for 'his unwavering support' in the local municipalities around the region.
Opposition parties unimpressed
But members of the EFF and the DA were not impressed.
EFF whip in council Tsheko Malepe and DA councillor in the municipality Isaac Thabo Makofane said the mayor reduced the address into an ANC imbizo to garner support for the ANC ahead of the local government elections next year.
But Grace Letsoalo of Practiseer praised Maila and the municipality. 'Maila's address is not just shop-talk, it is a true reflection of what is happening in Fetakgomo/Tubatse. There is indeed a great change in this municipality since Maila and his collective took leadership' she said.
