R228 million salary bill for Makhado Municipality

Employees of the Makhado Municipality will receive a salary increment of 6.79% this year, if the guidelines set by the annual budget are followed. This will push the municipality's salary bill up to just over R228 million, but it also includes several new posts to be filled.

The municipal mayor, Cllr David Mutavhatsindi, announced the salary increment during the state-of-the-municipality address last Friday evening. The event was held at the Dzanani community hall in Nzhelele. “The (new) positions will be filled through the process of service delivery priorities and the approved municipal organogram,” he said.

Mayor Mutavhatsindi said this year’s budget was inspired by the national development plan (NDP), a plan that will continue to dictate the municipality's strategic direction in years to come.

As far as the operating budget is concerned, the municipality expects to collect just over R770 million in rates and taxes. The expected expenditure to deliver such basic services is just over R746 million, which will bring about an expected surplus of about R24 million. The surplus is also the result of an increase in tariffs. As far as electricity tariffs are concerned, the municipality follows the Nersa guideline and proposed a 7.39% escalation. Property rates rise with 5.3%, while other services and sundry tariffs will increase by 6.2%.

The mayor was proud to announce that the municipality managed to spend the full Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) received the previous year. The municipality was granted a further R45 million to the normal allocation for the financial year 2013/2014, based on its performance. “The R45 million has already been committed to speed up service delivery to our communities. This means more capital projects for 2014/2015,” said Cllr Mutavhatsindi.

In the new financial year, the municipality will receive R107.08 million from the MIG, R1.6 million from the Local Government Financial Management Grant (LGFMG), R934 000 from the Municipal System Improvement Grant (MSIG), R7 million from Integrated National Electrification Programme Grant (INEPG) and an equitable shares grant totalling R287.64 million.

The mayor acknowledged that the municipality had failed in its efforts to maintain streets properly over the past year. He said that the municipality had resolved to find new and innovative ways to address this problem. “Progress reports will be given at various public participation platforms,” he added.

The mayor also applauded the Soutpansberg Rate Payers Association for their decision to resolve differences and to start paying the municipality directly for services rendered. "They can also attest that there is a major improvement in service delivery," he said.

The outstanding debt in the R293 towns is still a cause of major concern for the municipality. Several initiatives over the past few years by the municipality to get these residents to pay for services did not yield the expected results. The municipality is also losing revenue in certain areas because of illegal electricity connections. "It is common knowledge that residents must pay for the services rendered accompanied by unquestionable bills. The performance indicator in this regard will be correct billing and an increased revenue collection in the towns," he said.

The mayor emphasised that the culprits of illegal connections would be severely punished if the problem persisted. "Culprits will be dealt with as a way of sending a clear message even to prospective fraudsters," he said.

During his address, Cllr Mutavhatsindi insisted that empowering local businesses was a priority in Makhado Municipality. “The struggle for economic freedom should preoccupy our strategic agenda,” he said.

Date:04 July 2014

By: Phathutshedzo Luvhengo

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