The eThekwini Municipality has issued a statement reassuring residents that the City remains in good financial standing despite a constrained national fiscal environment.
They said services continue to be rendered in line with the approved budget for the 2024/25 financial year.
The City said they noted the widespread circulation of fake news through WhatsApp messages and other media platforms alleging that various departments in the municipality are unable to deliver services due to a “bleak financial situation”.
The departments mentioned include Water and Sanitation, Parks, Recreation and Cemeteries, Electricity as well as Cleansing and Solid Waste.
City Manager, Musa Mbhele, has dismissed the allegations, which he said was a smear campaign aimed at tarnishing the image of the municipality.
“It should be highlighted that the municipality is currently doing mid-term performance review in terms of the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA). It has been noted that some expenditure items are higher than normal due to various reasons, including adverse weather conditions which required more resources. For instance the heatwave affected a number of our electricity substations and the persistent heavy rain impacted our water infrastructure,” said Mr Mbhele.
“The mid-term review will inform the adjustment budget that is being finalised for the council meeting in February. The need for the adjustment budget is normal taking into account our complex operations and is provided for in the MFMA. This was also done in the previous financial year.”
Mr Mbhele said that with regard to allegations of plumbers not being dispatched to attend to water leaks – this was not true. The Water Network Branch responsible for this function continues to deploy both internal and contracted plumbers to attend to burst pipes and leaks order for the city to save water, he said.
Grass cutting services and maintenance of verges also continues in line with the annual grass cutting cycle. Mr Mbhele added that the City has significantly improved planning during its Integrated Development Process and has aligned its business processes to ensure improved accuracy and realistic budgets.
“It is therefore important that the public is not misled into believing that the municipality is bankrupt. Importantly, where the municipality is not living up to its service delivery standards we call upon the public to report these cases to the City Integrity and Investigations Unit by calling 0800 20 20 20 or email [email protected],” said Mr Mbhele.