Waste to send two on trip – DA

ETHEKWINI Municipality is accused of squandering thousands of rand sending councillors on overseas trips.

The DA said in a statement that the municipality would waste around R73 000 by sending two additional councillors to the International Conference on Disaster Management and Human Health in Seville, Spain in June.

Two officials and one councillor have already been approved, increasing the number of people travelling to five, the party said.

“The DA in eThekwini categorically objected to an amendment suggested by the ANC in a meeting of the Security and Emergency Services Committee to send a further two councillors,” said councillor Shaun Ryley, who sits on the committee.

He said, according to calculations, the breakdown of the cost for an extra two people showed that per person, the city would pay R9 000 for the conference, R5 000 for accommodation, R17 000 for air transport and R5 000 daily allowance.

“During the meeting ANC councillors suggested the number attending the conference be increased from one councillor to three councillors,” said Ryley.

“The DA sees the importance and the benefit of sending officials to such conferences, but we find it entirely unnecessary to increase the number of councillors attending the conference as this can only be viewed as wasteful expenditure.”

He said the only motivation offered was that the city would derive benefits from more councillors getting exposure to such events.

Deputy Mayor Fawzia Peer said the trip was still going to be discussed at executive council and did not want to pre-empt those discussions.