KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) municipalities must seize the fresh opportunities in the context of South Africa’s second economic phase of transformation by creating an enabling environment for stable economic growth at local level which must now come with new jobs, said MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Nomusa Dube-Ncube.
She was speaking at the annual meeting of the Institute for Local Government Management in Durban. The meeting attended by local government practitioners including municipal managers, local economic development expert and councillors was convened to reflect on the role municipalities should play in implementation the radical government programme of action encapsulated in the National Development Plan.
“In the province of KwaZulu-Natal we have the Provincial Growth and Development Plan which is our blueprint for creating a province that will be the gateway to Africa and that will be globally competitive. The immediate task before our municipalities today is to consolidate their role as engines of economic growth, development, sustainable service delivery and job creation. It is imperative for our local government to address the infrastructure needs of our communities while creating job opportunities,” said Dube-Ncube.
“As the government prepares to spend trillions of rands in what is considered the biggest infrastructure roll out on the African continent, municipalities must work enthusiastically to take advantage of this opportunities to boost local economies that will in turn lead to job creation. In the province of KwaZulu-Natal alone a total infrastructure budget of R46, 3 billion over next three years is expected to be spent and this must have a positive knock on effect to municipalities in terms of job creation. The local government sphere of government needs to organise itself in better way in order to ensure that it take advantage of the economic opportunities that will arise as a result of the investments on key infrastructure projects”. Added Dube-Ncube.
She challenged local government practitioners to be “agents of change” and to address the ills of corruption, fraud and service delivery protests that often tarnish the good image of municipalities.
“Yours is not merely a job, but a mission to right the wrongs of the past. In years to come we can either look back at this period with dejection at the opportunities lost or with a deep sense of satisfaction at our humble contribution to the broader national goal of reconstruction and development” said Dube-Ncube.
She praised the province’s 61 municipalities for their efforts to deliver key infrastructure projects which now serve growing numbers of people who have gained access to basic services such as water, electricity and sanitation.
“We are now closer to the universal access than ever before and we are well placed to close the gaps in this regard in the near future. We are working with municipalities on the maintenance and expansion of basic services infrastructure and we are also helping municipalities save water and electricity,” said Dube-Ncube.
She reminded municipalities of the important goals of achieving clean audit outcomes and reiterated her position that municipalities under administration and those that receive poor audit performance should not pay bonuses.
Dube-Ncube further cautioned municipal managers against the potential abuse of delegation section 36 (of the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) which she said is only applicable in cases of emergencies. We have noted that Out of 61 KZN municipalities, 13 recorded procurement of goods and services during the 2012/13 financial year under the Municipal Supply Chain Management Regulation No. 36, known as emergency deviation from the normal rules where multiple quotations are required above a certain amount.
“It is important to note that emergency deviations from the normal procurement procedures are acceptable and legal provided that they are justified by a genuine emergency or unavailability of required goods and services from multiple providers,” said Dube-Ncube.
The use of emergency delegations does not necessarily constitute any maladministration, fraud or corruption, However MEC Dube-Ncube is cautioning municipalities to make less use of this provision and only under critical and emergency circumstances.
KZN COGTA in partnership with the office of the Auditor-General will continue to exercise strong oversight over the application of this delegation and ensure that its application is under justifiable circumstances
“We will investigate emergency deviations from the normal procurement rules by municipalities and by flagging any irregularities it finds in this regard in the municipal audit outcomes”, Dube-Ncube concluded.
For more information contact:
Lennox Mabaso
Cell: 082 884 2403
