The North West Provincial Legislature Standing Committee on Provincial Public Accounts (Scopa) chairperson Smuts Matshe has instructed the City of Matlosana Local Municipality to submit a comprehensive report on the matter of double payments which should include amongst others the implicated units, all officials involved, each transaction and service providers involved.
In addition, Matshe emphasised that the Provincial Executive Representatives (PER) deployed by the Provincial Executive Council should submit a report on why the two advisory notes and the eighteen (18) directives were not implemented by the municipality that is under mandatory financial intervention.
During the public hearing where Matlosana was called to account on the UIF&W and the functionality of Municipal Public Accounts Committee, Matshe expressed shock at the increasing and unmanaged unauthorised, irregular and fruitless and wasteful expenditure (UIF&W) of Matlosana Local Municipality which was at R6 billion in 2021/22 financial year (when the current municipal council was appointed) to over R11 billion in the 2024/25 financial year.
City Report has recently reported the North West Provincial Treasury provided assistance to the municipality in December 2023, when a Voluntary Financial Recovery Plan (FRP) was developed in accordance with Section 154 of the Constitution and Section 142 of the Municipal Finance Management Act No 56 of 2003 (MFMA).
Amongst other challenges faced by the Voluntary Financial Recovery Plan (FRP), was a “precautionary suspension of the Municipal Manager Lesego Seametso and the arrest of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Mercy Phetla, who is accused of corruption and fraud – that created instability in the municipality’s administration.”
Speaking to City Report on the basis of anonymity, a municipal official accused the municipality of failing to implement proposed strategies and measures necessary to restore its financial health and improve service delivery. Compromised institutional integrity due to serious allegations levelled against senior managers and political office bearers and inadequate or ineffective consequence management.
“These people failed to follow advice and implement strategies given by the official from the provincial treasury, because they want to continue to loot and destroy our municipality.”
City Report also understands that the municipality that has been running on an unfunded budget, has an outdated organisational structure that is not aligned with its powers and functions. Its unsustainable debts owed to Eskom and Midvaal Water Company and nun adherence to the payment plants has also sabotaged the voluntary financial FRP.
The municipality had high distribution losses of 43% for electricity and 59% for water have resulted in the municipality’s inability to service its bulk accounts, with outstanding debts amounting to R2.5 billion to Eskom and R2.2 billion to Midvaal Water Company as at 28 February 2025.
It has also failed to comply with its supply chain management (SCM) policies and regulations resulting in irregular expenditure of R3.0 billion in 2022/23 and R3.3 billion in 2023/24.
City Report understands that in September 2024, the North West PEC resolved to intervene in terms of Section 139(5)(a)and(c) of the Constitution and placed the municipality under a Mandatory Intervention.
The Mayor, Cllr. Fikile Mahlope and Speaker, Cllr. Stella Mondlane-Ngwena admitted before the Provincial Public Accounts Committee that mechanisms to play political oversight and hold the municipal administration accountable regarding the escalating UIF&W are inadequate and will be improved.
Mondlane-Ngwenya said the municipality does not have adequate oversight committees that can hold each directorate accountable.
“Only MPAC and shared audit committee have been our oversight and accountability structures,” said Cllr. Mondlane-Ngwenya.
In response, Matshe said it was worrying that the oversight mechanisms such as committees of Council, Municipal Public Accounts Committee, shared internal audit services and Financial Misconduct and Disciplinary Board (FMDB) are not effectively utilized to deal with findings from the audit reports.
“In 2021/22 financial year, unauthorized expenditure was recorded at R3,1 billion and moved to R6,3 billion, fruitless and wasteful expenditure from R85,6 million to R821, 4 million and irregular expenditure from R3,6 billion to R3,6 billion (R1,2 billion was written off and condoned in 2023) in the 2024/25 financial year.
Speaking about the matter of the double payments of service providers, Mahlope said this was due to deficiencies and weak internal controls that are manipulated within the supply chain management.
“There are cases of financial misconduct that have been reported to the council, MPAC and FMDB for investigations,” said Mahlope.
“What is more puzzling is the admission by the municipality that there have been double payments of over R5 million to service providers using manual transactions to manipulate the financial system. It is sad that this seems to have been tolerated by the Municipal Council and Junior staff members are often targeted for disciplinary actions when the actual Managers who initiated, supported, recommended and approved these illegal transactions appear to be protected.
“The fact that some Directorates and Divisions are allowed in some instances to procure services without involving the Supply Chain Management Unit and without any purchase orders, suggests deeper challenges in managing public resources. This means that the SCM Unit appears to only get involved when payment is to be processed resulting in non-compliance and the situation becomes dire when the competitive bidding system (at least three quotations) is ignored,” said Matshe.
He also said the revised 2024/25 UIF&W reduction strategy has not yielded tangible results as services to communities is significantly deteriorating. Reasons given that the UIF&W was caused by overspending of allocated budget votes, contravention of supply chain management policies, tendered not advertised for minimum required periods and expired contracts are not sufficient.
“It is evident that there are no adequate management controls to prevent UIF & W and investigations are not carried out resulting in no corrective actions. Implementation of this strategy within the different directorates of the municipality is hampered by an unconducive organizational culture of not dealing with the transgressions,” Matshe said.
Meanwhile, Matlosana is also expected to submit report on Investigations conducted by the Financial Misconduct and Disciplinary Board and MPAC; non-compliance with the Municipal Standard Chart of Accounting, Copy of the latest UIF& W Reduction Strategy as well as an implementation Plan with clear timelines.
“Each directorate should detail how it has contributed to the ballooning of UIF&W and how it will correct it with timebound preventive measures. The municipality should also submit a detailed report on disciplinary cases related to UIF & W. This Municipality should be assisted to be fully functional and serve the people selflessly- it can be done. We need the commitment of Council, Management and all the employees of Matlosana.”
