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AfriForum instructed their 125 branches across South-Africa to keep a watchful eye on final salary increases, as included in the approved municipal budget, so that municipalities who fail to perform are not rewarded.

This follows after the South African Local Government Association requested that temporary and permanent councillors should not be distinguished from one another and that all councillors should earn R1, 3 million annually, the same as Members of Parliament. Municipal workers are also demanding an increase of 11%, which is more than inflation.

“Financing a dysfunctional government weighs heavy enough on ratepayers as it is. Communities across South-Africa are forced to take action and tackle problems in their towns such as fixing and replacing broken streetlights and electricity cables, fixing potholes, replacing water pumps and cleaning polluted rivers themselves. Now ratepayers are furthermore expected to fund outrageous salary increases. It doesn’t work like that,” says Ivan Herselman, spokesperson for Local Government Affairs at AfriForum.

“On the contrary, AfriForum is of the opinion that salaries should be decreased so that people who apply for municipal positions or to serve on the council will do so solely for the prosperity of the community instead of financial gain.”

AfriForum admits that there are councillors and municipal workers who do their best, but whose contributions are disregarded due to misadministration and a lack of political will. Outrages salaries will be discussed with the MEC for Local Government and Finances.

Issued by AfriForum