Bhisho to appeal Makana judgment

Even though he says a judgment that Makana municipality must be placed under administration should serve as a wakeup call, Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane and his government will appeal against the ruling.

The judgment was made in the Grahamstown high court on Tuesday.

“This should serve as a wakeup call to government to know that it has a responsibility to deliver services to the people,” Mabuyane said.

“[But] it’s a judgment that cannot just be left like that.

“We believe it can create an unfortunate situation in the country going forward.

“Our intention is to appeal. That’s why we have consulted legal advisers to advise clearly.”

Mabuyane said the municipality had shown improvements, thanks to the introduction of a new mayor and municipal manager.

“We believe if we leave it like this, there will no longer be what is called a municipality in SA.

“We don’t wish that the government is told by the courts what to do.

“The constitution of this country is clear in what must be done and by whom, at what time.”

Makana mayor Mzukisi Mpahlwa said: “We are consulting the municipal lawyers tomorrow [Friday], who will brief us. It is out of this meeting we shall take [the] decision on the way forward.”

While a municipality being placed under administration is a drastic measure, it does not always prove effective.

Last year, the beleaguered Amahlathi municipality was placed under administration, but according to residents in Stutterheim, the situation became even worse.

A source within the municipality, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, said: “To be honest, there is no accountability there. There are projects from the last financial year that overlapped with this financial year that are not funded.

“Money also had to be returned [to the national government] under the watch of the administrator.

“There is no compliance, it’s just internal squabbles.

“Assets of the municipality are not insured.

“The troika is just there because there has to be one. It’s worse than before.”

Stutterheim businessman Tony Isemonger said the situation in Amahlathi was less than ideal.

“If the municipality doesn’t sort out Stutterheim, people will relocate to where there is water and electricity,” he said

“I have not seen any improvement.

“People are positive about things but there’s got to be leadership here. We want to make Stutterheim work, we have vested interests here.”

Amahlathi mayor Agnes Hobo did not respond to queries.

There are, however, also instances when municipalities can perform well once under administration.

Oudtshoorn in the Western Cape is one such example.

Placed under administration in 2015, the municipality had inherited a creditors account of about R110m.

One of the big drawbacks it faced was the inability to convene regular council meetings to take decisions that could improve residents’ lives.

That situation was addressed and the wage bill cut dramatically.

Credible budgets were also established as part of the new financial strategy.