The Minister of Finance Mr Enoch Godongwana met with the Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg Mr Dada Morero on Friday, May 8, 2026, regarding serious concerns that the National Treasury has raised regarding the City’s finances. These concerns relate to financial sustainability and compliance with the Municipal Finance Management Act, 2003 (MFMA) by the metropolitan municipality.
In terms of its constitutional and statutory mandate, National Treasury exercises oversight over the financial affairs of municipalities and is obligated to act where it observes material risks to fiscal sustainability and compliance with the legislative framework governing public finances. The meeting was therefore part of the natural and regular oversight and engagement activities undertaken by the Minister and the National Treasury, and follows a confidential letter recently leaked to the media that Minister Godongwana had sent to Mayor Morero, calling for the engagement.
The meeting on Friday between Minister Godongwana and Mayor Morero, and their respective teams of officials and technical experts, was robust and productive. The engagements are ongoing and are being treated with the urgency that they merit, and while Minister Godongwana fully accepts the public interest in the matters, it would not be appropriate to detail the full scope of those discussions at this time.
Minister Godongwana assures the residents of Johannesburg that the National Treasury continues to pursue a constructive resolution to the issues that are in the interests of service delivery and financial sustainability. “It was a productive meeting,“ said Minister Enoch Godongwana. “The Mayor has agreed that he and his officials must go back and consider some serious remedial actions that will address the issues that we have raised.
They will soon submit a formal report to the Treasury in response to the letter that I sent,” said Minister Godongwana.
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