The Alfred Nzo District Municipality might have lost close to R1billion of service delivery funds in a period of three financial years. This came out in a media briefing held today (22nd January 2018) at the municipal boardroom to clarify issues after the arrest of five Municipal Officials. In this media briefing, it was revealed that the auditor General has described an amount of R591m from the financial year of 2015/2016/2017 as fruitless and wasteful expenditure. Meanwhile, the Hawks have in a statement said the Alfred Nzo District Municipality, allegedly flouted the procurement processes by irregularly awarding nine contracts to eight companies to install water pipes and tanks to Matatiele, Mbizana, Umzimvubu, and Cabazana. These contracts are amounting to the tune of R300m from the 2014/2015 financial year.
Responding to questions from the media Executive Mayor Sixolile Mehlomakhulu shifted the blame for the loss of this money to the previous council. “You must remember that all these irregularities happened in the previous council therefore we have inherited all this rot”, he said. Mehlomakhulu said the council is going to sit on the 30th of January to look at ways of dealing with this issue. Asked what is going to happen to the official who is facing charges of fraud and corruption, Mehlomakhulu said, they are unable to take a decision against them at the moment until the council on the 30th of January. The funds in question are from the infrastructure department and are meant for the construction of water reservoirs to be constructed in a number of wards around Alfred Nzo.
The Hawkes started investigating the municipality in 2015 while the SIU started in March 2017 after the proclamation was signed by President Jacob Zuma. Again on the 23rd of October 2017, President made another proclamation in terms of section 2(2) of the Special Investigating Unit and Special Tribunal Act, 1996 authorizing the Special investigating Unit to investigate certain matters in respect of the affairs of the Alfred Nzo District Municipality. In the press briefing, the Municipal Manager was adamant that there is no R300m lost from the coffers of the municipality but there is flouting of procurement processes. The arrested officials are still at work until the 30th January council decides otherwise.
