The Maluti-A-Phofung Municipality in Qwaqwa has successfully passed its 2019/20. The budget is projected for R1.6 billion.
This is despite the Democratic Alliance (DA) and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) boycotting the council sitting.
The council that was to pass the budget had been disrupted on numerous occasions by political squabbles in the council.
Free State Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC, Thembeni Nxangisa, has applauded the councillors for passing the budget vote for the 2019/2020 financial year.
Since March this year, the council failed to pass the budget vote due to political infighting.
The ANC provincial executive committee fired 16 party councillors for voting with the opposition on ousting the former mayor Vusi Tshabalala.
Nxangisa says the passing of the budge vote is a victory for service delivery.
“I’m very delighted. This is a milestone budget and it’s the beginning of good things to come. The community is going to benefit; people are going to receive their services. We are working together as people of Maluti-A-Phofung and Councillors have altogether said ‘We want change. It is starting now’.”
The bigger chunk of the budget will be on electricity and water.
“People of Maluti-A-Phofung will get services and we are going to make sure that with this budget we speed up service delivery,” says Acting Executive Mayor, Moeketsi Lebesa.
The MEC, Thembeni Nxangisa appreciates the high level of political maturity of all Councillor’s in Maluti-A-Phofung for ensuring that the municipality is saved pic.twitter.com/81yGARQmBd
— Free State COGTA (@CogtaFree) June 30, 2019
The municipality has since been placed under administration for over a year. “There were no payments that were going to be made and that would have had a detrimental effect on the service delivery,” says Administrator Moses Moremi.
The by-elections to replace the expelled 16 African National Congress Councillors in the Maluti-A-Phofung will take place towards the end of August.
