POLITICS

Residents owe Gauteng Municipalities R2.7bn – Adriana Randall

DA MPL says if this trend in revenue loss continues, then municipalities will struggle to render services

Residents owe Gauteng Municipalities R2.7 billion

28 June 2020

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is deeply concerned that the Covid-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on municipalities as residents are struggling to pay for services provided by municipalities.

This information was revealed to me by the MEC for Finance, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko to my questions tabled in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL).

According to the MEC, between April and May 2020 debtors increased by R2.7 billion. However, Mogale City did not submit any information on its debtors, and it is expected that this total will go up once they have submitted.

The table below indicates the monthly trends of debtors for April and May 2020:

Municipality

April 2020

May 2020

Difference

EMM

R15, 858,942

R16, 212,240

R353,298

COJ

R29,664,931

R31, 155, 951

R1,491,019

TSH

R15,285,694

R15, 864,516

R578,821

Emfuleni

R9,121,795

R9,249,420

R127,625

Midvaal

R420,183

R427,694

R7,510

Lesedi

R938,200

R938,261

R61

Sedibeng District

R68, 095

R70,799

R2,703

Mogale City

R1,829,729

R1,829,729

-

Merafong

R2,539,382

R2601,774

R62 393

Rand West City

R700,222

R772,010

R71,787

West Rand District

R27,797

R27,965

R168

TOTAL

R76,454,961,600

R79,150,356,327

R2,695,384,727

If this trend in revenue loss continues, then municipalities will struggle to render services to its residents.

Some municipalities have already been struggling to provide services because residents have not been paying, however, the Covid-19 pandemic has worsened the situation.

The DA calls on the MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Lebogang Maile to closely monitor how the municipalities used the Covid-19 relief fund to ensure that adequate services are rendered to Gauteng residents in these difficult times.

Issued by Adriana Randall, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC For Finance and e-Government, 28 June 2020