Note to Editors: Please find below an extract of the speech delivered by CJ Steyl MPL during the Budget Vote Debate on COGHSTA in the North West Legislature today.
Note to Broadcasters: Please find linked soundbites in English and Afrikaans by CJ Steyl MPL.
Honourable Speaker,
Today, we consider the R2,5 billion budget for the Department of Cooperative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs.
This department’s mandate is to improve the lives of North West residents, but sadly, considering the collapsed state of local government and the housing backlog, its performance and impact appears to be negligible.
The department’s assistance to municipalities has no positive impact because the problem with municipal governments in North West are two-fold.
First, it’s a political problem. That is, that the ANC, has been unable to enforce discipline and accountability amongst its deployees to local government.
Secondly, municipal administrations are politicised through cadre deployment along factional party lines to the extent that directorates are engaged in factional battles themselves, with themselves.
The crown jewel of local government failure in North West must be the Ditsobotla Local Municipality.
In Ditsobotla, nothing works.
Residents find themselves without access to water, electricity, refuse removal, coupled with non-existent billing, poor roads maintenance and sewage flowing down the streets polluting communities.
Ditsobotla is bankrupt, using the equitable share to pay salaries instead of funding service delivery programmes or to pay service providers, which have now refused to conduct any further contractual work due to the extended delays in payments.
How will Ditsobotla ever pay its R1,14 billion Eskom debt?
The department’s Annual Performance Plan does not speak to the challenges facing North West residents. It is not aligned to the agenda of the Government of National Unity as outlined by President Cyril Ramaphosa last week during his SONA.
MEC Molapisi, should align the APP to the agenda set by President Ramaphosa towards rectifying the collapsed state of local government.
The National Minister of COGTA, the IFP’s Velenkosini Hlabisa, announced that collapsed municipalities will be dissolved. We will engage Minister Hlabisa extensively on any dissolutions in the province.
Because we know that dissolving a municipality only makes matters worse. We saw that in Mamusa in 2019 and in Ditsobotla in 2022.
Every single Section 139 intervention in North West left municipalities worse off.
If this provincial government wants to fix municipalities, it must address the politicisation of administrative officials.
Skills and lifestyle audits of all officials must be conducted and where there is incompetence or malfeasance, they must be removed and the recruitment of qualified, skilled and nonpartisan individuals must be initiated independently from any political interference.
Like we do where the DA governs.
Human Settlements, despite the R1,8 billion in funding, will never be able to address the more than 300 000-unit housing backlog in the province.
The target for this year is only 3 376 units, while it will service only 6 054 sites and subsidise 70 First Home Finance (FHF) initiatives.
We know that the bulk of the housing problem in urban areas affect those individuals that earn within the bracket of R3 500 to R22 000 per month.
A target of 70 FHF initiatives is unacceptably low.
At committee, this department highlighted problems without indicating solutions. It blamed contractors for substandard work, instead of improving its project monitoring capabilities.
The North West Housing Corporation CEO spoke about a Development Bank of South Africa loan, and mega and smart cities, but at the same time told us that for as long as it cannot buy and sell properties, it will not be able to function.
I think the CEO wants to be the next Pam Golding of real-estate in South Africa instead of addressing the housing crisis.
Questions around the DBSA loan remain unanswered. Is it R50 billion or R75 billion? How will this loan be serviced, what is the interest rate, what guarantees are required, and what are the repayment terms. How will it affect the function of government?
If North West municipalities are not fixed to full functionality, this provincial government will never be able to deliver on its mandate to deliver decent housing, specifically to address rapid urbanisation.
It is about getting back to basics to create integrated, healthy and prosperous communities.
It is no good just building a new house somewhere, but there is no bulk infrastructure, parks, cultural and commercial centres, schools, or even tree lined roads. Building healthy communities does not begin and end with only a house.
Until our questions are answered and we see improved performance in local government, the DA will not support this budget.