DA misleads the public: ANC response to the Capital Budget Expenditure for 2011/12
DA Deputy Mayor of Cape Town Ian Neilson is widely quoted and specifically in the Cape Times on Wednesday 18th July, 2012 saying the city had spent R4,17 billion or 91.4% of its capital budget. Upon closer scrutiny of the official figures obtained by the ANC in Council, it is palpably and demonstrably clear that the figures were spin. The performance of the city is a mere 73%, just a meagre 1% better than in the previous financial year!
In this regard the following indisputable facts are noteworthy:
1. The deputy Mayor boasts that "the city had adopted the highest capital budget of any city in South Africa." The total budget approved by the metro council in June 2011 was just over R5 billion and this figure was further increased to R5,615,474,937 (R5.6 billion). Against this budget the total expenditure is 73% not 91.4%!
On examining the figures for individual directorates the following pictures has emerged:
a. The Human Settlements Directorate's approved budget was R751 million which was reduced to R553 million (R197 million or a 26% reduction) and actual expenditure is R490 million - a mere 65% expenditure against 88.6% as claimed by the Deputy Mayor.
i. Further in the Human Settlements Directorate an amount of R17 million was approved for Informal Settlements. This amount was reduced by a whopping 90% to R1,7 million and the directorate was only able to spend just over R900,000 (nine hundred thousand rand)!
ii. New Settlement's approved budget was R317,9 million which was reduced by 55% to R143,7 million and a mere R109 million was spent or 34% of the approved capital budget expenditure!
iii. Urban Renewal's approved budget was R10,2 million that was reduced to a mere R800,000 (eight hundred thousand)! Against this actual expenditure is R685,000. Over R9 million remains unspent - a real shame!
b. Transport, Roads and Storm Water's approved budget was R1,9 billion and reduced by 26% to R1,4 billion. Against the approved budget the performance was a mere 63% not 86.3% as claimed by Nielson!
i. Within Transport, Roads and Storm Water directorate, IRT Implementation had an approved budget of R771 million and only R508 million was spent leaving a whopping R263 million unspent!
ii. The MyCiti budget was R430 million and only R277 million was spent leaving R167 million unspent. It is important to note that the funds for IRT implementation and MyCiti are grants coming from the national government. Neilson misled the public by claiming that "the city also spent most of the funds allocated to it through grants"!
c. Other Poor performers include:
i. City Manager expended a dismal 29% of his small approved budget of R422,360.
ii. The deputy City Manager spent 49% of his approved budget of R28,3 million.
iii. Community Development & Early Childhood's approved budget was R360,000 and only R155,000, less than half is spent.
iv. Arts and Culture had an approved budget of R536,000 and only R380,000 was spent leaving R156,000 unspent.
d. In Utility Services Bulk Water Department has failed yet again to expend its R1,5 billion budget to build a plant and reservoir at the Berg River Dam in order to purify and supply water to the northern areas. In addition a sewer pipeline project linking Mitchel's Plain to Athlone has been canned to create a better capital expenditure. These are but a few examples of projects that were well motivated and Council approved funding for, but have not been actualized either because of incompetency or incapacity of the administration or even worse still lack of political will by the political leadership of the City of Cape Town.
Mayor Patricia de Lille's articulated vision for the City of Cape Town as set out in the 5 pillars she used as her election campaign platform is: building an opportunity city, a safe city, an inclusive city, a caring city and an efficient city.
The question to ask is: Where is the opportunity that the City is talking about when it is unable to spend over 50% of the Human Settlement budget and the Informal Settlement budget cut by 90% where funds that were earmarked for the poorest of the poor in terms of providing shelter? Where is the caring displayed when the Informal Settlement budget is cut by 90% and New Settlement budget is spent to the tune of only 45%?
Over R1,2 billion was approved by Council for IRT Implementation and MyCiti in order to roll out transport facilities to the Cape Flats and only R700 million was expended denying transportation facilities for the poor. Where is this caring City displayed in action? The poor continue to travel unsafely and crammed into trains and buses. Someone in the political leadership of the City of Cape Town must take responsibility - heads must roll!
Nielson failed his fiduciary position and misled the public on the city's finances.
This once more proves the DA's perceived building of perceptions with lies, spin, smoke and mirrors. It is all cosmetic, but with no substantial substrata. The facts, figures and documents again disprove the DA's spin and lies!
Statement issued by Xolani Sotashe, ANC Chief Whip, City of Cape Town, July 19 2012
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