Executive Mayor of Mopani District Municipality, Councillor Pule Shayi
The embattled Mopani District Municipality has taken to court to stop the provincial government, through the Department of COGHSTA, from placing it under administration after successive disclaimer audit outcomes and poor water provision.
Attempts to place Mopani under administration comes after Premier Mathabatha and MEC of COGHSTA Basikopo Makamu recently raised concerns about its spoiling the good audit picture of municipalities in the province, which have seen Waterberg retaining a clean audit and Capricorn returning to a clean audit outcome, are being fought tooth and nail by the district.
A special council sitting of the Mopani District Municipality on Friday, 31 March, reaffirmed its position against the planned implementation of Section 139 of the Constitution by the provincial government of Limpopo, saying that it will await the outcome of the case to be heard in the High Court on July 18, 2023.
In a statement issued after the special council sitting, the district said it welcomed the support of the provincial government through Section 154 of the Constitution, which empowers national and provincial governments to support and strengthen the capacity of municipalities.
Section 154 of the Constitution states that “The national and provincial governments, by legislative and other measures, must support and strengthen the capacity of municipalities to manage their own affairs, to exercise their powers and to perform their function.”
Meanwhile Makamu, in his capacity as MEC of COGHSTA, has described Mopani court challenge against intervention by the provincial government as unfortunate, and that they are engaging the district for an amicable way forward.
Speaking during a television news interview, Makamu said the provincial government’s intervention in the Mopani district is based on the law that enjoins the MEC of COGHSTA to institute a rapid assessment in a municipality, if he has cause to believe there’s maladministration.
The placement of Mopani under administration came after support had failed to produce uninterrupted water provisioning and proper financial management.
On the other hand, the DA councillor Mahlatswa Lebbeus Ramalepe has called on the Mopani District Municipality to desist from entering into protracted legal battles. He mourned that the municipality’s finances are plagued by large amounts of unauthorised, fruitless and wasteful expenditures, unfinished Regional Bulk and Water Services Infrastructure Grant projects, the bulk of which date back to as far as 2009.
Added to the municipality’s troubles is the R200 million in water debt owed by municipalities, departments and other entities.
“The municipality must focus on implementing the Auditor General Action Plan to ensure that residents receive much needed services of uninterrupted water delivery,” Ramalepe added.
Ramalepe further said that the DA will monitor the situation and ensure it does not affect residents’ access to municipalities.
