GREATER KOKSTAD MUNICIPALITY THE BEST RUN MUNICIPALITY IN KZN
The same municipality forms part of 14 Municipalities topping the list of the best functioning Municipalities nationwide
By Andile Moshoeshoe
The Greater Kokstad Municipality has once again been accoladed with kudos as it has now transpired that it features amongst the stable Municipalities in the country and leading in the KwaZulu Natal Province.
This latest revelation comes in the wake of results of the assessments by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) where a report was issued in June 30 that the Greater Kokstad Municipality is amongst the list of 14 leading Municipalities in the country and is leading in the KwaZulu Natal Province in terms of being a stable and better functioning Municipality.
The report was officially tabled in the Cabinet by the country’s Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.
The report came to light following President Cyril Ramaphosa’s request to focus on assessing the performances of 257 municipalities in the country. Part of the key assessment areas included politics, governance, administration, financial management and service delivery.
The Municipalities were grouped into different categories based on the outcomes of the assessment with those dysfunctional being marked as red, while those that are classified as medium to high risk marked as amber and those that are low risk marked as yellow and the stable municipalities marked as green.
The State of Local Government Report furthermore revealed that 36 Municipalities are struggling with challenges in governance performance area, 63 municipalities have serious service delivery challenges and 163 municipalities are in financial distress.
This report follows yet another report by the Africa Ratings Agency, which placed the Kokstad Municipality in a leading position in the KwaZulu-Natal Province and also on number six in the country in governance category.
The Kokstad Mayor, Councillor B.M. Mtolo has welcomed the report from CoGTA and further acknowledged the contribution and commitment from both the political wing and administration of the Municipality.
“We really appreciate the calibre of our management team who always display the willingness to serve our people,” said Cllr Mtolo.
He added the good results of the Municipality were through the unity of the Council and commitment in performing oversight role without interference which he said was also a contributing factor to the achievements by the Municipality. The Greater Kokstad Municipality will continue to serve its people with integrity and dignity they deserve, added the Mayor.
The Council speaker, Cllr Zolani Mhlongo echoed the Mayor’s sentiments stating that the Municipality’s record speaks for itself and the achievements of the Municipality are through unity and the capacity in which the municipal management has.
