ActionSA says S154 intervention will not solve eThekwini Municipality’s problems

ActionSA has welcomed the decision to invoke Section 154 of the Constitution in the beleaguered eThekwini Municipality. However, the party does not believe this move will resolve issues in the metro. 

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) MEC Thulasizwe Buthelezi introduced Dr. Mike Sutcliffe and former Director General Dr. Cassius Lubisi as the two governance experts appointed to lead the intervention in eThekwini. 

ACTIONSA SAYS SECTION 154 WILL NOT SOLVE ETHEKWINI MUNICIPALITY ISSUES 

Addressing the executive committee, Buthelezi said they aim to restore eThekwini to its former status as the jewel in the crown of KZN.

The former Zululand District Municipality mayor said this action by the provincial government underscores the commitment to clean governance and accelerated service delivery as pronounced by Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli.

Buthelezi said the strategic support under 154 will, among other things, entail building a clean, effective, efficient, responsive, and accountable local government and implementing the findings of investigation reports.

Section 154 mandates:

“The National Government and Provincial Government, by Legislative and other measures, must support and strengthen the capacity of municipalities to manage their affairs, to exercise their power and to perform their function.” 

ActionSA chairperson in KwaZulu-Natal, Zwakele Mncwango, said they firmly believe that invoking Section 154 will not adequately address the deep-rooted issues plaguing eThekwini. 

Mncwango said this measure is a soft approach that fails to address the urgency and severity of the municipality’s problems.

In addition, he said they strongly believe that a more decisive approach is necessary. This means that the municipality would be better placed under administration per Section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution.

The piece of legislation empowers the provincial executive to intervene by assuming responsibility for the municipality’s obligations to:

• Maintain essential national standards or meet established minimum standards for service delivery;
• Prevent the Municipal Council from taking unreasonable actions that are prejudicial to the interests of another municipality or the province as a whole;
• Maintain economic unity.

“It is concerning that during the IFP and DA’s election campaigns, they explicitly stated their intention to invoke Section 139 in the municipality should they govern. However, in their efforts to appease the Government of National Unity (GNU), these parties have now settled on Section 154.”

METRO CONTINUES TO WRITE OFF BILLIONS OF RANDS 

Moreover, during a council meeting on Friday, Mncwango said he questioned eThekwini Municipality Speaker Thabani Nyawose on whether he can definitively confirm the Section 154 intervention in the municipality. However, he failed to provide a definitive answer.

According to ActionSA, eThekwini Municipality is currently set to write off over R24 million due to irregular expenditure incurred over multiple financial years and R931 345 188.13 million from 1 July 2023 to 31 March 2024, after having written off R2 030 763 586.26 billion in February this year.

“This highlights the municipality’s incapacity to perform essential functions, further underscoring the necessity for Section 139 intervention.

“As ActionSA, we believe that parties in the GNU should collaboratively govern while holding each other accountable for their shortcomings. The people of KwaZulu-Natal need a dependable government, not one that protects its interests at the expense of residents,” he emphasised.