The Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) supports all forms of development and investment aimed at attracting capital and job opportunities to the nation’s capital, and will not stand idly by as the Tshwane Metro’s budget constraints hinder such developments.
According to a report by the Oversight Committee on Economic Development and Spatial Planning, the Metro is increasingly relying on the private sector for strategic urban developments, but lacks sufficient capacity to provide bulk services such as electricity, water, sewage and roads. In addition, if agreements are not properly structured, the Metro risks incurring unforeseen costs.
The Auditor-General (AG) has repeatedly pointed out that there has been no re-investment in outdated infrastructure over the past decade. The Metro’s Engineering Department simply does not have the budget to provide the bulk services required by new urban expansions, including electricity and water supply, sewage, roads and stormwater networks.
These constraints not only lead to delays in the approval of new developments, but also postpone the revenue that could be generated from these developments’ tariffs, taxes and service fees.
Inadequate infrastructure may also result in developers choosing to invest elsewhere, thus hindering potential economic growth and job creation. In cases where bulk services are provided reactively, it unnecessarily drives up costs.
The Freedom Front Plus will keep fulfilling its crucial oversight role to facilitate orderly development that benefits the entire Tshwane Metro.
The Metro simply cannot afford to have developers’ projects stagnate while waiting for strategic infrastructure development that should have been in place already.
