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AG set to shed more light on the state of municipalities

───   KATLEHO MORAPELA 11:53 Fri, 14 Jun 2019

AG set to shed more light on the state of municipalities | News Article
South Africa's Auditor-General, Kimi Makwetu PHOTO: Sowetan Live

Questions are mounting as to whether the state of municipalities countrywide has improved and whether they have implemented the last corrective measures by the Auditor-General (AG).


This, as the country eagerly awaits AG Kimi Makwetu’s report on local government. Makwetu is next month expected to release the financial audit outcomes of municipalities for the 2017/18 fiscal year. His report will come in the same month as the new Municipal Cost Containment Measures are set to take effect. 

The new regulations set to kick off from the 1st of July were proposed by the Finance Minister, Tito Mboweni, in consultation with Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) minister, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, in efforts to cut down on wasteful expenditure at local government. 

According to the new regulations, municipalities in the country will no longer be allowed to spend municipal funds on alcohol, catering for internal meetings only attended by officials, on procurement for luxury vehicles and on the appointment of consultants to perform municipal functions, amongst others.

The AG’s upcoming financial report is expected to shed more light on how municipalities have been doing in the past fiscal years and whether they have been meeting their obligations.

In his latest report, Makwetu indicated that most municipalities needed intervention. He outlined that their audit outcomes regressed, the state of good governance was on a decline and a lack of accountability had become prevalent in many municipalities.

He further indicated that all municipalities in the Free State needed urgent intervention.

Municipalities in this province had incurred a total of R675 million in irregular expenditure during the 2016/17 fiscal year alone.

They further owe Eskom the highest amount as compared to municipalities in other provinces. They are more than R7.8 billion indebted to the power utility, with Maluti-A-Phofung taking centre stage.


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