The FF Plus boycotted a budget meeting of the Emfuleni Local Municipality (Evaton, Sebokeng, Vaal Oewer, Vanderbijlpark, Vereeniging) by walking out due to the unlawful way in which the ANC wanted to modify the existing adjustment budget for 2021/22.
The reason is that the Speaker, Sibongile Soxusa, did not follow the lawful process in the council whereby all political parties are afforded the opportunity to debate the budget, instead, the modified adjustment budget was adopted without any debate.
In doing so, the Emfuleni council violated its own standing rules of order.
In response, the FF Plus decided not to participate in this blatantly unlawful conduct of the ANC-controlled council and left the meeting out of protest.
Further adjustments were made to the existing adjustment budget for 2021/22 because due to the ANC's poor governance, among other things, an amount of R120 million earmarked for municipal infrastructure was not spent.
The amount was, therefore, taken back by the Treasury. The loss of R120 million earmarked for vital infrastructure is outrageous given the fact that the Emfuleni Municipality is already bankrupt and was placed under administration, while its infrastructure is collapsing all around.
In addition, the Municipality also failed to spend the allocated funds in other areas as well and those funds were taken back by Treasury too.
This affects, among other things, municipal service delivery relating to water infrastructure as its budget was cut by R35 million. Furthermore, the neighbourhood development grant, the Integrated National Electrification Programme as well as the energy demand grant were each reduced by R2 million.
In total, the Emfuleni Municipality forfeited an amount of R161 million to the Treasury due to sheer incompetence and the failure to execute plans. And the ANC is now trying to unlawfully remedy the situation by modifying the existing adjustment budget.
And so, the Emfuleni Municipality stumbles from one crisis to the next under ANC rule.
The FF Plus will bring this matter to the attention of the provincial government when the Gauteng Legislature's Local Governance Committee meets today to ensure that the disorder in the Emfuleni Municipality is addressed.
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