Grandi Theunissen FF Plus leader in Tshwane
Describing Dr Nasiphi Moya’s State of the City Address in glowering terms, opposition party in the City of Tshwane Freedom Front Plus has expressed its blatant dissatisfaction regarding the Mayor’s speech.
“A glamorous event while residents face financial pressure,” that’s how party leader in the Tshwane Municipality Council Grandi Theunissen characterised the Mayor’s speech.
He bemoaned the fact that the event was held at Unisa where lots of money was spent to book the venue, instead of holding it inside the City of Tshwane Council chambers.
“This is a flagrant disregard for the Tshwane Metro’s financial decay because the Tshwane Metro is technically bankrupt, yet hundreds of thousands of rand are being wasted on a vanity project that brings no improvement to service delivery,” fumed Theunissen.
“The FF Plus will urgently investigate the actual cost of this State of the City Address to determine whether it was worth the money used for it,” he said.
“The Mayor claims that her coalition government has placed the Tshwane Metro in a better position since taking over but the reality is that presently, service delivery is at its poorest level ever,” emphasised Theunissen.
He said Moya denies that there is a water crisis in Tshwane, yet the residents of Hammanskraal still lack clean drinking water.
He said the so-called funded budget is a farce, “especially in light of the Auditor-General’s report which indicates a collection rate of only 83% compared to the alleged 90%.”
Theunissen said Dr Moya cites improvements in cash reserves, the latter remains silent on outstanding creditors amounting to R5 billion primarily from Eskom and Rand Water.
“Furthermore, by failing to pay creditors within the prescribed 30 days, the Tshwane Metro is accumulating hundreds of millions of rand in interest penalties, and this turns into fruitless and wasteful expenditure that cancels out any theoretical surplus,” said Theunissen.
“The Mayor’s growth target of 3,9% is a dangerous distraction which lacks immediate and aggressive fiscal reform and promises of R86 billion make for nice newspaper headlines, but they don’t pay Eskom bills and do not repair burnt pipes,” he said.
“Investors will not risk their capital in a Metro where basic service delivery is a daily gamble and the debt burden continues to increase,” said Theunissen.
Theunissen pointed out that economic growth is not a miracle; that it is a result of a Municipality that serves its taxpayers, protects its industrial hubs and prioritises a clean audit over political games.
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