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The Citizen
3 days ago
- Business
- The Citizen
DA slams Tshwane's first funded budget since 2021
The DA says the budget increases costs for vulnerable residents while protecting elite networks. While the City of Tshwane's coalition partners celebrate the passing of its first fully funded budget since 2021 in council yesterday, the opposition has accused the city of using its residents as cash cows. The coalition partners which included ANC, EFF, ActionSA, Good, DOP, ATM, PA, PAC and AIC said the budget represented a significant step toward restoring fiscal stability, advancing service delivery and meeting growing developmental needs of residents. DA rejects budget as a betrayal of the poor DA Tshwane spokesperson on finance Jacqui Uys however rejected the 'farce that was the City of Tshwane's budget'. Uys said the ANC government disregarded Tshwane's vulnerable communities because the watchman services budget was increased from R307 million in 2024 to R565 million. 'Tshwane's budget, while promising to uplift and make life easier for the residents, is nothing but a protection of ANC patronage, while using residents as cash cows. The ANC has ignored opposition voices and included another punitive tax on residents. 'The plan is to tax every single resident who cannot afford to make use of the city's rubbish collectors, at R500 per month, by forcing them to pay R200 per month in the form of a city cleansing levy,' she said. ALSO READ: Tshwane's R54.6bn budget draws mixed reactions Private power plans and patronage concerns Uys said the flawed budget was an exercise in protecting patronage networks with R20 million allocated to pay for an advisor that will facilitate transactions getting the Rooiwal and Pretoria West Power Stations operated privately, yet it was clear there is no plan to rid Tshwane of Eskom's 93c/KwA wheeling tariff. 'No independent power producer will be able to sell electricity at a loss this tariff causes,' she said. Uys said it was clear that they wanted to keep Tshwane dependent on Eskom patronage. 'The deputy mayor in his budget speech celebrated that the water woes of Ikageng are over. Yet the taps are dry and water tankers can be found everywhere. This budget has almost doubled the water and sanitation department's water tanker budget,' she said. ActionSA hails budget as a major coalition victory ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said the passing of the 2025-26 Tshwane budget represented a major victory for all the city's residents. 'It marks the first time that ActionSA mayor Nasiphi Moya and her multiparty coalition government have delivered from their own budget, an astonishing feat, given the changes already achieved in the city,' he said. Mashaba said plans to reimagine customer care in the city were exciting, ensuring that residents receive timely, responsive service and clear feedback while issues were being resolved. NOW READ: Here is how Tshwane will be spending its R54.6 billion budget
IOL News
15-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
DA challenges Tshwane's budget as Deputy Mayor highlights support for the poor
DA spokesperson on finance, Jacqui Uys criticises City of Tshwane Deputy Mayor Eugene Modise's 2025/26 "pro-poor" budget speech. Image: Jacques Naude/ Independent Newspapers The DA in Tshwane has criticised Deputy Mayor Eugene Modise's 2025/26 "pro-poor" budget speech, claiming it prioritises the ANC's image over serving residents. This is despite Modise's emphasis that the budget considers poor households struggling to pay municipal rates and services. 'Tshwane is home to residents who face many social ills, including unemployment, poverty and limited access to essential services. As a caring government we have ensured that we provide a safety net for our most vulnerable residents,' Modise said. For the 2025/26 financial year, he said, the indigent threshold has been revised upwards from R150 000 to R250 000 under the new general valuation roll. 'This change will extend its support to approximately 180 000 households that fall within this threshold,' he said. DA spokesperson on finance, Jacqui Uys, said: 'This budget is not serving the residents of Tshwane but becomes part of the ANC's quest to look good on paper but fail in its real mandate – delivering services.' 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 Next Stay Close ✕ She said the DA will continue to push for a budget that raises the property tax exemption from the current R150,000 to R450,000. She argued that such a budget would bring relief to residents facing sharp property value increases and help poorer households access the city's free services for indigent families. 'The Deputy Mayor's budget also confirms the introduction of a waste levy. As per the draft budget, this new levy raises the city's revenue from waste collection to R2.4 billion for the financial year, up from the current year's R2bn,' Uys said. Modise announced a fixed charge of R194 per month for households using private refuse collection, saying it is aimed at improving urban cleanliness and waste management. He said: 'Much has been made of this proposed cleansing levy. It must be noted that this levy is not new or unique to Tshwane. A cleansing levy was introduced some years ago and was duly taken on judicial review in order for its implementation to be regularised.' Uys noted that the draft budget proposed reducing waste collection and illegal dumping spending from R2.1bn to R2bn in the next budget cycle. "This clearly indicates that the intention of this new levy is not to ensure a cleaner city but rather the introduction of yet another tax to use the residents of Tshwane as a stop-gap to improve the city's financial position,' she said. Herman Mashaba, ActionSA president, welcomed the tabling of the first fully-funded budget since 2022, saying it reaffirms the coalition's commitment to good governance, financial stability, and improved services for all residents. He said: 'In recognition of the new administration's growth-focused approach, ActionSA welcomes the R780 million allocated to Economic Development and Spatial Planning. This is aligned with the City's economic revitalisation strategy, which aims to attract over R17bn in investment and create 80 000 jobs.' He said the budget acknowledges the city's severe infrastructure challenges, resulting from years of mismanagement and underfunding, and represents a positive shift through targeted investments. Modise pointed out that the budget allocates R1.4bn for repairs and maintenance to foster a culture of asset upkeep. For example, he said, Region 1 will receive R27.42m for projects like the Soshanguve IA and W substations' refurbishment, while Region 2's R23m allocation will support the Pyramid Substation and public lighting initiatives.
Eyewitness News
15-05-2025
- Business
- Eyewitness News
Tshwane DA calls for review of city's budget to lessen tax burden on residents
JOHANNESBURG - The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Tshwane is calling for a review of the city's budget to lessen the tax burden on residents. The opposition party in the metro said the current draft budget treats residents as cash cows. This call comes ahead of Finance MMC Eugene Modise's budget speech for the 2025/26 financial year. The African National Congress (ANC)-led multiparty coalition government in Tshwane has touted the draft budget as the municipality's first fully funded one since 2021. However, the DA alleges that this has been made possible by the city extorting more money from already over-burdened ratepayers. The DA's Jacqui Uys said Tshwane must scrap the introduction of the new city cleansing levy and increase the threshold of exempt rateable properties to R450,000. 'He (Modise) should consider a budget that serves the residents of Tshwane and not become part of the ANC's quest to look good on paper but fail in its real mandate at delivering services to the people of Tshwane. If he wishes to table a budget that doesn't push the financial rescue of the city of Tshwane onto its residents, he will heed the DA's submissions into the budget process.' The DA said it cannot support the budget in its current form.
Eyewitness News
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Tshwane DA accuses ANC of imposing unfair rates on whites-only settlement Kleinfontein
JOHANNESBURG – The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Tshwane has accused the African National Congress (ANC)-led multiparty coalition in the capital of imposing unfair rates on the illegal white Afrikaner-only settlement of Kleinfontein. The DA said there are 19 other illegal developments in Tshwane, including Leeufontein and Moshate Gardens, that are not being charged rates and taxes. At a recent council meeting, the DA submitted a motion that would have allowed the city to attach a value to the over 19,000 properties built on incorrectly zoned settlements. However, the motion did not serve. Earlier this month, Eyewitness News reported that the Tshwane municipality bumped Kleinfontein's value from R21 million to R291 million. This means the settlement's rates and tax bill will go from R50,000 a month to R2 million a month. The DA's Tshwane spokesperson on finance, Jacqui Uys, said the city is charging punitive rates to illegally zoned settlements like Kleinfontein. 'The City of Tshwane has 19 illegally established developments like Kleinfontein, Leeufontein, and Moshate Gardens, where approximately 19,500 individual erven (plots of land) are not charged rates and taxes.' Objections to the Tshwane general valuation roll close on 2 May. ALSO READ: MK Party to introduce private member's bill to clarify what self-determination means
