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The Democratic Alliance (DA) has engaged the Gauteng MEC for Finance, Jacob Mamabolo, and the Head of Department for Treasury to alert the provincial government about the Merafong Local Municipality’s electronic financial system crisis and facilitate a solution.

We have done this because the municipality has failed to prepare any of its usual financial reports for the Gauteng government. The current situation has significant implications for service delivery and the well-being of residents.

On the 31st of December last year, the contract for the use of the BIQ system by Quill Associates expired. The absence of a new tender award has left the municipality without a functioning financial system.

The DA has been reliably informed that no money can move out of the municipal account, leading to unpaid creditors and potentially unpaid salaries. An oversight visit to the rates hall confirmed that ratepayers are told the system is down. One ratepayer was handed a piece of paper with the municipality's Nedbank account details and told to go and pay directly into the bank account.

The DA has also heard unconfirmed reports that the preferred bidder for the new contract lacks municipal experience and will cost twice as much as BIQ. One of the losing bidders has now taken the matter to court which will result in protracted legal battles for the already struggling municipality.

The DA calls on the Municipal Manager to be transparent and communicate the situation and plan of action to the residents. Residents should be prepared for what is to come as unpaid salaries are an imminent reality and service delivery could collapse. While the municipal manager might have constraints preventing him from resolving the situation, it is better to take the community into his confidence to at least try to maintain some public trust.

The DA will continue to put pressure on the Municipal Manager and his team, as well as provincial government departments, to resolve the situation while we monitor service delivery.

Issued by Ina Cilliers MPL - DA Merafong Constituency Head