eNCA | DA dismisses reports City of Joburg is ‘cash-strapped’
JOHANNESBURG – The Democratic Alliance has rejected a Sunday newspaper report that the DA-led City of Johannesburg is in financial trouble.
The DA has noted a report in the City Press that the city is “cash-strapped” and “heading for a bailout”, and rejects the allegations as false and a misrepresentation of the city’s finances, DA spokeswoman Refiloe Nt’sekhe said.
“The new DA-led administration had worked tirelessly to stabilise finances and this intervention was already yielding positive results. Thanks to the city’s revenue collection drive, Operation Buya Mthetho, May was one of the highest revenue collection months in the city’s history. This could be directly attributed to a team of highly skilled professionals in the city, who were putting the interests of residents first as part of a fruitful turnaround plan,” Nt’sekhe said.
“Our ongoing fight to reverse the damage done to the city’s finances by previous ANC administrations has been well-documented. Since taking over the [city] after our 2016 local government election victory, the DA-led administration has committed itself to ensuring efficient service delivery for all citizens of Johannesburg, especially the poor.
“The previous ANC administration’s corruption has robbed the poor of not only quality service delivery, but much-needed jobs as well. The DA’s determination to address the consequences of this corruption is evidenced by our pursuit of 3500 graft cases in the city,” Nt’sekhe said.
The City Press report appeared to be critical of the money the city spent on forensic investigations into corruption in the city administration. This was, however, exactly what was required to ensure that corruption never reared its head again in the city, as it was the reason for the country’s skyrocketing unemployment rate – currently at 9.5 million people.
“Despite the money lost to ANC corruption, the city still has a balance of R3.279 billion and this will be carefully managed as we continue to provide quality services. Furthermore, we will attract much needed investment to improve the city in order to create more jobs for residents and maintain Johannesburg’s reputation as one of Africa’s economic powerhouses. The City of Johannesburg will continue to prioritise its citizens through efficient service delivery and a pro-poor agenda that will lift its people out of poverty,” Nt’sekhe said.
African News Agency