Cape Town governance: DA maintains 100% record of unqualified audits
The fact that the Democratic Alliance-run City of Cape Town has maintained its unbroken run of unqualified audit reports, ever since the party took office in 2006, is yet further evidence that where the DA governs, it governs better.
The City of Cape Town's clean bill of health from the Auditor General is detailed in the City's annual report, which has now been tabled. The report also records impressive progress being made in the City's infrastructure development, service provision, housing delivery and financial management. The news comes just two weeks after the Auditor General also confirmed that the DA-run Western Cape is South Africa's best run province. The Auditor-General said on that occasion:
"The most notable improvement in the audit outcomes of departments occurred in the Western Cape where seven departments and five public entities improved to financially unqualified with no findings on either predetermined objectives or compliance with laws and regulations. [...] The province is the first whose financial statements of all of its departments and public entities are financially unqualified."
That the City of Cape Town, under a DA government, has once again been awarded an unqualified audit is particularly significant when contrasted with the situation facing the City of Johannesburg. The City is on the verge of receiving a qualified audit as a consequence of its billing chaos, since the Auditor-General has rejected financial statements from both Joburg Water and from City Power. The audit, which was due for completion in December, and should have been tabled at the end of January, remains on indefinite hold.
Should the City of Johannesburg receive a qualified audit, this would almost certainly affect its credit rating, which will hamper the City's ability to attract investment, raise money and pay back R15 billion in long-term loans. It goes without saying that this, in turn, will affect the City's growth prospects and ability to deliver services.
The problems facing Johannesburg could not stand in starker contrast with the details presented in the City of Cape Town's report:
On housing, the City has also provided another 8 950 housing opportunities and acquired more land for future long-term development. This compares favourably to the performance of the ANC when it ran the council. In the ANC's last three years in charge of the city (2003-06), it provided just 9 862 housing opportunities, while the DA provided some 24 965 housing opportunities in the last three years (2007-10), a 253% increase.
In terms of service delivery, the City has virtually set the standard by which all metros are judged. The most recent Universal Household Access to Basic Services (UHABS) report ranked the city as the top metro for the provision of water, sanitation, refuse collection and electricity. The City provided 100% of formal households with access to basic water and sanitation services and 92.18% with access to electricity. Of all known households in Cape Town, 99% receive basic levels of solid waste removal.
On infrastructure development, the City saw R12.4 billion in investments and improvements for the 2010 World Cup, such as the Cape Town Stadium, downtown roads and bridges, the Green Point Urban Park, public transport infrastructure and various sports complexes. All of these legacy projects will benefit city residents for years to come.
Finally, in addition to its unqualified audit, the City has maintained its positive long-term credit rating of Aa2.za for the fifth consecutive year.
Cape Town's growth, development and good governance bear testimony to the fact that where the DA governs, we are determined to deliver efficient, transparent and responsive government for all the people.
Statement issued by James Lorimer MP, Democratic Alliance Shadow Minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, February 4 2011
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