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The Democratic Alliance (DA) raised various points at the Moqhaka Council meeting held on 14 April to address several pressing matters. Of particular concern was the irresponsible escalation of some staff members' salary scales by the acting Municipal Manager (MM) without adhering to the necessary legislative requirements or consulting with labour. The acting MM subsequently admitted to his error and cancelled the salary increases after heated discussions.

The DA further called for an investigation into the MM's legislative mandate and authority to make such decisions. In addition, the DA requested an urgent discussion on the Executive Mayor's, Cllr Mokatsane, failure to inform the Council monthly of payments made towards the Eskom debt as per agreement.

During the meeting, the Mayor announced that the MEC COGTA would allocate funds to service approximately 5000 sites in Moqhaka, with the project set to commence in June. Additionally, the Mayor pledged to establish a task team to combat the tampering of electricity cables, which has contributed to the high costs of stolen power from the municipality.

The DA recommended that the acting MM conduct an ICT Steering committee meeting within the next 30 days and report back to Council. These meetings had previously been identified by the Auditor General and MPAC as not having materialised in the past.

Finally, the Mayor pledged to present a debt recovery plan at the next Moqhaka Council meeting. The DA will ensure the Mayor's accountability in addressing these critical issues and calls for swift action to ensure compliance with legislative requirements and effective service delivery to the community.

The DA has highlighted several critical issues at the Moqhaka Council meeting, including the irresponsible upgrading of staff salaries, the need for increased transparency in reporting Eskom debt payments, the allocation of funds for site servicing, and efforts to combat electricity cable tampering. The DA remains committed to ensuring effective governance and service delivery to the people of Moqhaka.

Issued by Chris Dalton - DA Councillor Moqhaka Local Municipality