Govan Mbeki Municipal Council must be dissolved as it is bankrupt and can’t pay creditors
The Bulletin received the following statement in response to the recent “State of the Municipality” and the dissolvement of the Lekwa council.
The DA in Mpumalanga calls for the Govan Mbeki Munich Council to be dissolved. “Prior to his recent State of the Municipality Address, Mayor Nhlakanipho Zuma had consistently indicated that the municipality was bankrupt and couldn’t afford to pay creditors,” said James Masango, DA Councillor in GMM, “However, on his State of the Municipality Address he made unfounded and empty promises of a litany of upcoming projects in the next financial year by projecting the municipality as viable.”
This is of course not the case and it is for this reason that the DA calls for its dissolvement.
• The current government has failed to replace old electrical boxes that have exploded due to power outages in Bethal, Emzinoni, Embalenhle and Secunda. The people of this municipality need a government that will prioritise maintenance and bring a stop to illegal connections that are costing on average 70% of its electricity monthly.
• Sewerage spillages in Embalenhle has been an issue since 2008 when Mpumalanga was declared as “bucket free”.
• Refuse removal is a challenge and streets are filthy.
• Most of the street lights are dysfunctional in all residential areas and towns.
Read more on the Democratic Alliance (DA) HERE
These are but a few of the issues bothering residents of Govan Mbeki Municipality.
In order to make this municipality financially viable again, a capable government is needed. A DA government will prioritise the following:
• Have proper data of indigent and poor households.
• Ensure that those who can afford to pay are paying their bills on time, thus bringing back the culture of paying for services rendered.
• Employ a service provider that is able to do proper readings, capturing and billing of consumers. And ensuring payment is in accordance with their performances.
• Criminalise illegal reconnections by any consumer or by being assisted by the municipal employees.
• Employ competent and qualified staff that add value to the services rendered to the community.
• Pay Eskom and Rand Water according to current payment agreements.
Once all of these services are enforced, investment will return and the Municipality will become economically viable again.
Also read: National Treasury ordered to intervene in Lekwa
Residents of Govan Mbeki are fed up of paying for services that are not rendered. They are tired of bathing in cold water and sometimes having to not bath at all due to unavailable water services. They can’t wait for another five years of empty promises.
They need change for a new government and it is time for change now. A DA government can do better in this municipality. The proof is in the municipalities that the DA currently govern in the Western Cape and elsewhere in the country.
