Let Kimberley live again

RELEASE the Section 106 report. This is no longer a request, it is now a demand.

And the demand isn’t coming from the opportunistic opposition parties trying to score cheap political points at the expense of ratepayers and service delivery, as the ANC would have us believe. It is coming from the community, the very same people who asked for the investigation in the first place. Even the structures within the ANC, notably the ANC Youth League, are saying enough is enough and, in the words of the youth league, no longer should a few individuals holding onto power be allowed to enrich themselves at the expense of service delivery.

The initial 21-day deadline for the completion of the report, commissioned three months ago already, has long come and gone.

Coghsta MEC Bentley Vass now says that the report has to be tabled at a city council meeting before it can be released to the public.

Section 106 of the Municipal Structures

Act states that if an MEC has reason to believe that maladministration, fraud, corruption or any other serious malpractice has occurred at a municipality, it may designate persons to investigate the matter. Nowhere does it state that the findings of the investigation first need to be presented to the city council before it can be made public.

One wonders then what legal premise the MEC is using to prevent the document from being made public.

Let’s not forget that it was the same veil of secrecy around the R260 basic electricity tariff, which was unilaterally implemented without any public discussion, that led to this mess in the first place. The Section 106 report was never commissioned by the city council. In fact by the time it was commissioned, the council had effectively stopped functioning already.

So why then does it need to first be presented to council before it can be made public?

Essentially, the investigation fingers three people, namely the former mayor, Mangaliso Matika, the municipal manager, Goolam Akharwaray and the CFO, Lydia Mahloko.

The arrogance displayed in withholding a report about three people, to the detriment of an entire city, is mind-boggling.

Our matric pupils should be allowed to write their final examinations with the confidence that taxis will be operating normally so that they can get to school on time. They should be able to sit down and have the confidence that their examinations will not be disrupted. Taxi operators should have the confidence that they can transport their commuters without fear of blocked roads, so that they too can earn a living. Businesses should be able to open their doors with confidence that they will be able to trade without fear of being looted or their windows being smashed. People should be able to go to work without disruptions.

Thousands and thousands of people in the city are being held hostage over an investigation into three people.

Release the report and let Kimberley live again.