According to Hans-Jurie Moolman from the Democratic Alliance, the municipality spent close to R4 billion on unauthorised, irregular and wasteful expenditures in the past ten years.

He explains the amount is twice the annual budget needed to run the municipality. He says a report by the Auditor-General detailed how the municipality was losing money due to irregular, wasteful and unaccounted expenditure.

"Currently, there is a significant drop in revenue collection in the municipality, primarily due to a lack of accountability, which results in a lack of service delivery." 

"In order to provide services, a municipality must generate revenue. So, if services are not provided because of lack of accountability, you also see a drop in revenue and the money that we need to provide services to our people.

"This vicious circle started with the amalgamation of the Tlokwe municipality with the Ventersdorp municipality. Our revenue collection here was very high, actually to the extent of 90%, whereas in Ventersdorp it was very bad. At the moment, we have dropped very badly in terms of revenue, meaning our income is not coming in that we need to provide," he says.

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He says another issue that has resurfaced is National Treasury grants, which are not spent due to a serious lack of capacity in management. "The Treasury is now withholding grants because municipalities are not spending them."

He says factional battles within the ruling party are also resulting in unfinished or incomplete projects, causing residents to suffer.

The spokesperson for the municipality, Jeanette Tshite, previously told OFM News that the Treasury was not about to stop funding. "The low expenditure towards the allocated grant funding is due to the delay in the appointment of the service providers. 

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"However, this matter has been addressed, as service providers have been appointed. The municipality aimed and continues to aim to exhaust funding by committing to specified projects recognised by funders during the planning stages of both the original and special budgets," she said.

OFM News