Sol Plaatje finally receives a clean audit

THE SOL Plaatje Municipality has finally achieved a clean audit, joining four other local municipalities in the Northern Cape in obtaining an unqualified opinion without findings from the auditor-general.

This was announced yesterday by the MEC for Co-operative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs (Coghsta), Alvin Botes, when he tabled his department’s budget vote for the 2017/18 financial year.

For the 2015/16 financial year, the Sol Plaatje Municipality received an unqualified audit opinion with findings from the auditor-general.

The total 2017/18 budget for the department is R725.4 million (up by 7.3 percent from last year).

Administration received R94.3 million (13 percent of the total), Human Settlements R468.8 million (65 percent), Co-operative Government R141.8 million (19 percent) and Traditional Affairs R20.5 million (three percent)

Botes yesterday also revealed the audit outcomes for the past financial year and said that while the Frances Baard and ZF Mgcawu district municipalities maintained unqualified audits with no findings, the Joe Morolong and Ubuntu local municipalities regressed from qualifications to disclaimers.

Two local municipalities, Dikgatlong and Kgatelopele, improved their performance from a disclaimer to qualified and Gamagara went from qualified to unqualified with findings.

Eleven municipalities maintained their audit opinions of unqualified with findings, while 10 municipalities maintained their outcomes of qualified.

Botes said that the auditor-general had identified municipalities that had cleared most of their audit findings raised in the prior years and in the current year, and were only left with a few findings to address in order to improve from unqualified opinion with findings to unqualified without findings and some from qualified opinion to unqualified with findings.

The municipalities are: unqualified with findings to unqualified without findings - Namaqua District Municipality, //Khara Hais Local Municipality, Sol Plaatje Local Municipality, Khai-Ma Local Municipality and Kareeberg Local Municipality. Qualified with findings to unqualified with findings - Karoo Hoogland Local Municipality, Kamiesberg Local Municipality and Nama Khoi Local Municipality.

Botes said that these municipalities appeared to be responsive and looking to improve their audit outcomes.

“There are only three municipalities, Renosterberg, Magareng and Phokwane, whose audit opinions are still outstanding. The basis for the outstanding audit opinions is that Provincial Treasury is assisting these municipalities with assets unbundling and the preparation of Annual Financial Statements. Tsantsabane is the only municipality that submitted their Annual Financial Statements late. In addition to the above and as part of the implementation of financial reforms, the department, in collaboration with National and Provincial Treasury, have assisted Dikgatlong and Renosterberg local municipalities with the development of their Financial Recovery Plan,” Botes said.

Moving to the issue of municipal debt owed to Eskom, Botes stated that the Intergovernmental Relations Task Team, consisting COGHSTA MEC Alvin Botes

of provincial government, Eskom and municipalities, which was established early last year, was beginning to yield positive results.

“The improved payments level is also attributed to the equitable share payouts after the end of March. Although there are 17 municipalities that are still indebted to Eskom, I can confidently report that 11of these municipalities (Nama Khoi, Renosterberg, Kai Garib, Thembelihle, Gamagara, Ubuntu, Siyathemba, Phokwane, Kamiesberg, Kgatelopele and Emthanjeni) have successfully paid their monthly bill up to April 30, 2017. The other six municipalities (Siyancuma, Tsantsabane, Dikgatlong, Magareng, Ga-Segonyana and Khai Ma) honoured their payment agreements until the end of March 2017 and two municipalities (Kgatelopele and Renosterberg) have been paying without signing any payment agreement with Eskom,” Botes said.

The MEC went on to say that, with the Department of Water and Sanitation, Coghsta had eradicated bucket toilets in several areas.

“From a target of 2 137 units, a total of 1 134 flushing units have been completed and handed over to communities in Britstown, Braaipal, Bongani and Griquatown. Only 93 of these units are yet to be connected to the flushing system. Out of 3 393 units, a total of 2 962 flushing units have been completed and handed over to communities in Dakotaweg, Kalksloot, Louisvale, Paballelo, and Rosedale.

“In the Namaqua District area all the 192 flushing units have been completed and handed over to communities in Springbok. In the ZF Mgcawu District area, out of 611 units 583 have been completed and 328 of these are completed flushing units and have been handed over to communities of Maranteng and Postdene.

“In the Frances Baard District area, from the 1 114, all units in Motswedimosa and Fraser Moleketi communities have been completed but not yet connected to the flushing system or handed over.”

Botes also indicated that the commercialisation of initiation schools remained “an elephant in the room”.

“During the 2016 initiation season, there were two deaths in the Province. The enactment of the Northern Cape Initiation Schools Bill, which is aimed at regulating and enforcing initiation practices and curbing illegal initiation in the Province, will be enacted in 2017.

“The department also intends convening a Traditional Leaders Summit in 2017/18, aimed at harmonising relationships between traditional leaders, elected leadership (councillors), ward committees and community development workers in the JTG District. The vision is to establish a working forum that will be monitored and evaluated on a quarterly basis,” Botes said.