Note to Broadcasters: Please find attached soundbites in English and Afrikaans by Lerina Strydom
Dr. Kenneth Kaunda District Municipality is facing significant financial strain, with escalating employee costs and declining infrastructure investment threatening service delivery and long-term sustainability. Despite clear warning signs, the municipality has failed to implement sound financial management, placing political interests above the needs of residents.
A staggering 58.93% of total operating revenue is consumed by employee-related costs, far beyond acceptable norms, and when councillor remuneration is included, this figure climbs to 64% of total expenditure. Meanwhile, the 2025/26 capital budget stands at only R13.8 million, reflecting a 27.71% decrease from the previous year. With just 20% of the capital budget spent by April 2025, misalignment between spending and procurement plans points to serious inefficiencies in project implementation.
Further concerns include an overreliance on national grants, which make up 95% of revenue, yet no structured revenue enhancement strategy exists to ensure long-term financial sustainability. The budget allocates R5.8 million for EPWP projects, yet clarity on its alignment with National Treasury is lacking, while the R38 million allocated to the LED & Planning department has failed to yield measurable business opportunities or job creation.
Despite a R66.2 million budget for Community Services, no bylaws or tariffs have been tabled or gazetted to generate revenue, exposing leadership deficiencies. Compounding these issues, zero funding has been allocated for municipal repairs and maintenance, ensuring further deterioration of infrastructure, while blatant non-compliance with National Treasury’s cost containment regulations continues to weaken financial stability.
An independent skills audit should address the concerns regarding alleged ghost payments, cadre deployment, or irregular EPWP appointments and would be able to verify employee records, identify discrepancies in payroll, and assess whether appointments align with municipal policies and financial sustainability. This audit would help uncover any mismanagement or abuse of resources, ensuring transparency and accountability in municipal operations.
The DA rejects the final budget and demands immediate corrective action, including a full skills audit to assess staffing efficiency and resource allocation, restoration of capital expenditure to ensure sustainable infrastructure investment, implementation of financial accountability measures to prevent mismanagement, and clear justification of employee-related expenses and unfunded mandates.
The municipality must prioritize transparent financial management and service delivery. The DA calls on the North West Provincial Treasury and the Department of Cooperative Governance to urgently intervene. We remain committed to pushing for transparency, service delivery, and proper financial management in the interest of every citizen of this district.