Embattled eThekwini Metro Mayor in KwaZulu-Natal, Mayor Zandile Gumede has delivered the city’s R50 billion budget.
The African National Congress’s (ANC) Gumede remains defiant in the face of a chorus of calls for her to step down, after appearing in court on fraud and corruption charges last week.
The matter relates to a R208 million solid waste tender in which Gumede and 11 others were charged.
She says some of the budget will address infrastructure and safety issues.
“It’s largely going to look at issues of the poorest of the poor, because they are going to be exempted from paying rates. Also, we are going to be looking at the issues of safety and security because we are going to be recruiting 400 Metro Police officers and try and deal with issues of crime. We are also going to be looking at infrastructure upgrades because we felt it’s very important to upgrade the infrastructure that we have,” says Gumede.
