EC Municipalities debt to Eskom surpasses the Billion-rand mark
December 4th, 2019
As of the 19th of November, the debt owed to Eskom by Eastern Cape municipalities surpassed the R1-billion mark. This growing debt places Eastern Cape municipalities under significant risk of having their power disconnected. In a response to questions for oral reply in the Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature today (Wednesday 4 December 2019, the MEC of COGTA, Xolile Nqatha, revealed that, as of 19 November, the collective debt of Eastern …
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Looming electricity disruptions will cripple Eastern Cape economy
November 20th, 2019
Businesses and residents in the Raymond Mhlaba, Amahlathi and Sundays River Local Municipalities are facing the reality of not having electricity, even though they have paid for the service, because their municipalities have failed to pay Eskom. Eskom has recently published notices for planned power disruptions that will cripple the already failing Eastern Cape economy. Businesses will be forced to close their doors and thousands of jobs stand to be …
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The Democratic Alliance moves for Enoch Mgijima municipality to be dissolved
October 24th, 2019
The Democratic Alliance has today moved a motion at the special sitting of the Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature (Taking the Legislature to the People) in Komani, that the Enoch Mgijima Municipality be dissolved in terms of section 139 (1)(c) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. The Democratic Alliance believes that the Municipality has failed to meet its executive obligations in terms of the Constitution and legislation in …
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Phase one of first eco-friendly road in South Africa completed
October 22nd, 2019
The first eco-friendly road in South Africa, that incorporates waste plastic that would otherwise have gone to landfill or ended up in our oceans, has been completed in Jeffreys Bay, in the DA –led municipality of Kouga. This amazing accomplishment comes two years after a motion by the Democratic Alliance to consider the implementation of a pilot project – to test the feasibility and practicability of building roads by incorporating …
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R53 Million Somerset East Airfield now cattle grazing field
August 28th, 2019
The R53-million Somerset East Airfield that was opened in January 2016, has now become nothing more than grazing field for stray cattle due to the Blue Crane Route Local Municipality’s failure to act. The airfield, with its 1.2km long runway, was built by the Cacadu Development Agency in collaboration with the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform. It was supposed to be the gateway for transportation of domestic produce …
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Service delivery failing in EC municipalities
August 15th, 2019 Service delivery in Eastern Cape municipalities is buckling under the weight of financial mismanagement and the lack of support by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA). Maladministration, irregular and wasteful expenditure, corruption and factionalism are also rampant, and this contributes to the general implosion of service delivery in our municipalities. The plight of Eastern Cape municipalities was highlighted in terms of the 2018/19 Consolidated General Report on …
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Less than a month after having violated the Municipal Structures Act by purporting to have passed the municipal budget with far less than a majority of the vote, and violating the Municipal Finance Management Act by irregularly appointing a permanent Chief Financial Officer, the rogue Sunday’s River Valley Municipality (SRVM) has struck again. SRVM seems to be determined to achieve a hat trick in maladministration, as they have proceeded to …
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Graaff Reinet community rally as ANC fail to address water crisis
February 18th, 2019 The Graaff Reinet residents are outraged as raw sewage is believed to be flowing into the Nqweba Dam, while the quality of water in their taps has drastically deteriorated as the water crisis deepens. This follows after sewage has been flowing from the nearby sewerage works for the past six months, due to a broken pump, which has yet to be repaired by the municipality, despite numerous reports of the …
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Graaff Reinet waste transfer site reported to Green Scorpions
February 13th, 2019
I have written to the Green Scorpions to report that the Graaff Reinet waste transfer site is in a deplorable state and is an absolute health hazard as well as a safety risk for residents of the municipality. Please view the letter below: Letter I have requested that the Green Scorpions take steps against the municipality for allowing this environmental health situation to reach disastrous levels. Hopefully, this will draw …
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Taps, along with service delivery, runs dry in Klipplaat
November 22nd, 2018
Thousands of people in the Karoo town of Klipplaat have been denied their Constitutional right of access to water for more than a week, with taps in running dry in homes, schools and clinics across the town. What makes it worse, is that the situation was entirely preventable as, despite the drought, there is water. It is simply not reaching the intended end-consumer. I have written to the MEC of …
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