The mayor of the Zastron-based Mohokare Municipality has defended payments made to service providers amidst protests by municipal workers due to the non-payment of salaries.

Mayor Zingisa Mgawuli told OFM News payments were made to service providers because they had rendered services to the Zastron-based municipality. She blamed a low revenue collection of R1.5 million whilst they were billed R16 million.

Municipal workers burned tyres in front of the municipal offices in Zastron in protest against the non-payment. Photo supplied

“It says a lot about the financial constraints that we are facing. On top of that, you must remember that there was a time when this municipality was using a conditional grant for the payment of salaries. So it means that when you do that you won’t focus on collecting because you think you have money but it’s not the municipality’s money but one meant for projects,” she said.

On Friday 6 October, workers took to the streets demanding their salaries from the cash-strapped municipality.

Municipal workers burned tyres in front of the municipal offices in Zastron to protest the non-payment. A person in the upper echelon of the municipality, who requested to remain anonymous, said the municipality is prioritising service providers with close contact with politicians and officials. The insider said the municipality received an equitable share of R28 million in July 2023.

“(This month,) the municipality approached a bank to ask for an overdraft to pay workers but the request was declined. The municipality was told that its financial standing is not in good condition. It was further told that it does meet the requirements to make a loan. 

“If I am not mistaken, over R11 million of the R28 million was paid to service providers. If there were to be any issues with the municipal salary bill we should be experiencing it around the end of October or November, and not September.”

Several municipalities in the province failed to pay employees their salaries for September due to cash flow issues. Mohokare has now become the third Free State municipality to issue workers with notices of late payments after the Welkom-based Matjhabeng and Theunissen-based Masilonyana did so recently.

OFM News