Months after a cash crunch forced Buffalo City Metro to freeze funding for projects, the city has finally reinstated the R50m ward allocation amid fears that it had buckled under pressure from ANC councillors.
BCM resorted to putting the brakes on its projects as financial woes deepened in 2022, leading to all 50 wards across the metro waiting longer for their R1m each.
Metro spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya last week confirmed the reinstatement of the funding, insisting the move was in line with the law.
“The municipality’s collection rate fell below the expected level, resulting in reduced available funds for all own funded operational projects,” he said.
“This was a stop-gap measure to manage the cash flow at that particular moment.
“As the financial status affected all operational projects, the municipality adopted an ‘urgent and important’ approach to implementing operation projects.”
The municipality approved its midyear adjustment budget in February.
Ngwenya said this allowed operational projects to be implemented as adopted by the council for the current financial year.
“The expenditure of the municipality is guided and legislated by the Municipal Finance Management Act,” he said.
“As such, no expenditure will be done outside the established legal framework and as the AG [auditor-general] pointed out, we cannot compromise on our strict internal controls.
“The wards use this budget to implement project/projects that deliver immediate to medium term benefits.
“These include ward cleaning, vulnerable group support, youth in sport development and skills development programmes.
“The ward councillors together with the community and all other interested ward stakeholders share the responsibility and accountability of decisions taken on how to spend the ward allocation budget.”
Shedding some light on how the ward funds were handled, Ngwenya said the municipality had financial control over its budget.
He said all the finances of the municipality were in the custody of the finance directorate.
“The funds allocated to any programme/project for implementation are kept in the official and legislated financial institutions,” he said.
“These monies are paid to service providers upon completion and/or delivery of goods and services that have been procured through the municipality’s supply chain processes.
“The ward councillor, together with the ward community and interested ward stakeholders, have a responsibility to make decisions on the ward allocation budget. This is achieved through a ward general meeting.”
The DA in BCM accused the ANC councillors of pressurising the metro into releasing the funding.
DA caucus leader Sue Bentley said: “The ANC ward councillors put much pressure on the CFO in council in January for the budgets to be reinstated — they were stopped because of the financial cash flow crunch [all own-funded projects were stopped] in August 2022.
“As the DA we were surprised that the full million was reinstated in each ward because, though the financial situation has improved slightly, we did not think it had improved enough to reallocate R1m to each of the 50 wards in BCMM”.
Bentley said the DA ward councillors had planned ahead for how they would allocate the money to benefit the wards.
Ward 23 ANC councillor Sibongile Gulwa said he met with community members last year to set out their priorities.
The ward comprises Mdantsane’s zones 14, 16 and 18.
Gulwa said they would spend on hiring the expanded public works programme (EPWP) workers, beatification, grass cutting and bush clearing as well as sports.
“We have already received part of it; hence workers have already started cleaning,” he said.
Gulwa is still making follow-ups with the relevant office regarding funding for other initiatives of his ward.
Ward 18 DA councillor Jason McDowell said he had already held all the necessary public ward meetings and all the necessary paperwork was sitting with the department.
The ward comprises Vincent, Bunkers Hill, Nahoon Beach, Bonnie Doon and Woodleigh.
“It was decided this year to buy tree and grass cutting equipment,” McDowell said.
“This is to try help the parks department keep the ward clear as most of their tools of trade have either been stolen, broken or waiting for maintenance/ parts etc."We are now just waiting for BCMM to purchase these items."All of this equipment is to only be used in Ward 18 and we hope this will slowly help catch up with all the public open space backlog.”
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