DA Johannesburg mayoral candidate Helen Zille says stabilising the city’s finances, tackling corruption and fixing its billing system would be central to her proposed turnaround strategy if the party takes control of the municipality.
Speaking to 702, Zille said Johannesburg was owed R81 billion while owing its creditors R25 billion, describing the city’s financial position as a major obstacle to delivering basic services.
She said the municipality was struggling to afford essential operational expenses, including fuel for vehicles and spare parts for substations.
“There isn’t enough money to put fuel into vehicles, to buy any spare parts for substations,” Zille said.
She argued that corruption and the alleged diversion of municipal revenue were contributing to the city’s financial difficulties.
Zille proposes financial recovery plan
Zille said the DA had developed financial and water recovery plans but warned that implementing them could be difficult if the party had to govern through a coalition.
“A coalition always ties your hands,” she said, arguing that large coalitions could become unstable when smaller parties had the power to bring down a government.
Asked about the DA’s proposal to end cadre deployment in local government, Zille said stabilising Johannesburg’s finances would be among the most difficult challenges facing a new administration.
She also argued that corruption needed to be addressed as part of the effort to improve the city’s financial position.
Zille pointed to Cape Town, where she said the municipality planned to spend R42 billion of its own money on infrastructure over the next three years, primarily for poorer communities.
She attributed the difference between the two cities to the way municipal funds were managed.
Water revenue and billing system under scrutiny
Zille said a substantial portion of Johannesburg’s water revenue should be reserved for water-related needs, rather than being diverted to other municipal expenses.
She proposed ring-fencing at least 70% of the money collected for water.
“We won’t ring-fence the whole amount, but it’ll be substantially ring-fenced to at least 70% of the money that comes in for water,” she said.
Zille argued that water was a fundamental responsibility of local government and that municipalities needed to prioritise essential services.
She also identified Johannesburg’s billing system as a major problem, saying some residents were struggling with bills they believed were incorrect.
According to Zille, residents who wanted to challenge their bills or make payment arrangements could be required to sign an acknowledgement of debt, creating a further obstacle for those disputing large amounts.
She said the city needed to establish a reliable billing system while ensuring that residents who genuinely could not afford basic services received support.
Zille cited Cape Town’s free basic services package as a model, saying the city had about twice as many people on its extended social package as Johannesburg, despite being much smaller.
She said a DA-led administration would seek to identify residents who qualified for assistance and ensure they applied for and received the support available to them. At the same time, she argued that residents who could afford to pay for municipal services should do so.
Prioritising essential services
Zille also called for a clearer hierarchy of municipal spending, with water, electricity, roads and refuse removal among the priorities.
She argued that inflated tender costs and the diversion of funds could leave municipalities struggling to deliver essential infrastructure.
As an example, she described a water project in a community where residents had allegedly gone without water for 15 years. She said Johannesburg Water had begun work on a borehole project but abandoned it after about two weeks.
Zille said she subsequently brought in engineers and others to complete the project, which included water purifiers, solar panels, manifolds, pipes and water storage tanks.
She said the completed project cost R2.6 million and contrasted this with what she described as the city’s proposed cost of R37 million for the taps and manifolds alone.
The example, she argued, illustrated how municipal spending could be reduced while delivering infrastructure.
Zille said a financial recovery would require Johannesburg to direct more resources towards essential services and ensure that revenue collected for specific purposes was used appropriately.
EWN
