Free State Premier, Sisi Ntombela, is hopeful that the group of eight men and women, who include the FDC’s incumbent chief executive officer (CEO), Thabo Lebelo, will return the entity to its former glory.

Ntombela’s sole request to the board is that they must move quickly in transforming the entity for the better. “Our children are suffering and our youth is losing hope. Let’s move a little faster. Our economic development strategy must speak to the wishes of the masses,” concludes the Premier.

Also read: Newly-appointed FDC board to be unveiled

The board is led by developmental studies academic and Municipal Demarcation Board member, David Mohale, as the chairperson. His deputy is seasoned business manager, Charlotte Khetha, who hails from Thaba’ Nchu. The chief executive officer (CEO) of the Free State Black Business Chamber, Lucky Motsamai, is also amongst the latest FDC board appointees. The group was appointed in December 2021 – six months after the previous board was disbanded.

The others are Naledi Sithole, Zimlatha Nhlapo, Thabang Motlohi, and Isaac March. Ntombela and the MEC for Economic, Small Business Development, Tourism & Environmental Affairs (Destea), Makalo Mohale, weren’t the only members of the Executive Council in attendance. The MECs of Social Development; Police, Roads, and Transport; Sports, Arts, and Culture; Finance; Health; as well as Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, were all present.

In early December 2021, the FDC was subject to a scathing mention in the Auditor-General (AG) of South Africa’s report on the audit outcomes of provincial and national departments for the 2020/21 financial year. AG Tsakani Maluleke and company highlighted some of the revenue challenges that are negatively impacting the FDC presently. For one, the entity earns revenue by leasing out the commercial and residential properties it owns in the province, and also by charging interest on the loans it offers to small, medium and micro enterprises.

The entity allegedly doesn’t receive many financial grants from Destea because it is meant to be self-sustaining, but it isn’t. In order to improve its cash flow, the FDC needs to recover its long-outstanding debt from tenants and loan recipients - 96% of which has been deemed irrecoverable. A part of this debt was paid to a billing and collection service provider procured by the FDC. 

However, this service provider ended up going into voluntary liquidation, and now owes the FDC over R100 million of the funds recovered. “The entity should also use its in-house legal department to recover the long-outstanding debts owed by tenants, instead of paying external parties to do so,” said the AG.

Mohale weighed in briefly on the matter in his interview with OFM News, mentioning that the FDC was in a legal process to recover the funds that were owed to it by varied businesses. The FDC management recently presented their turnaround strategy to the Executive Committee (EXCO) of the province. The strategy entails ensuring that the entity has sufficient liquidity, by recouping money owed to it by local businesses indebted to it.

Furthermore, the AG’s office has reported irregularities discovered at the FDC to the Hawks for criminal investigation.

OFM News