GOOD Press Statement by Sarah Mabotsa,
GOOD City of Tshwane Councillor
15 February 2024
GOOD is dismayed – but not surprised – by news that the City of Tshwane could soon have R629 million in conditional grants stripped from it after the municipality failed to spend its expected allocation for the 2023/24 financial year.
A leaked letter to City manager Johan Mettler from the Treasury indicates the City could lose R391.4m from the Urban Settlement Development allocation, R85m from the Public Transport Network allocation, R102.8 from Informal Settlements Upgrading Partnership allocation, and many others.
These grants from Treasury are specifically allocated to – amongst other things – formalise informal settlements, upgrade roads and public transport networks, and provide better service delivery to Tshwane’s less fortunate residents.
The failure to spend these grants is the latest in a line of anti-poor actions taken by the coalition.
In his 2023 State of the Capital Address, Cilliers Brink claimed he was building a “capital city that works for all of its people”. His administration appears to be dead set on doing the opposite.
Many Hammanskraal residents aren’t able to access water tanks daily. Sinkholes dotted across the City destroy small and informal businesses and the livelihoods of their owners. The last remaining City-run homeless shelter has shuttered due to chronic underfunding. The scars of Apartheid era spatial injustice still bleed bright red.
On the other hand, 100s of million are pumped into an economic development agency that yields no returns. Last month the coalition blew money on an unnecessary Deputy Mayor position that was created to appease coalition partners.
The City seems to be less focused on the plight of the poor, and more on maximising financial wastage.
Cilliers Brink has less than a week to explain the underspending of conditional grants allocated from the Treasury. There is no doubt that he will wax lyrical about how his government supposedly cares for those who would benefit from these grants.
But residents have ripped off the wool he’s placed over their eyes. GOOD will continue to place pressure on the coalition to prioritise the needs of residents who urgently need assistance.
Media Enquiries:
Sarah Mabotsa, GOOD City of Tshwane Councillor
Cell: 064 684 8640
Email: smabotsamuthivhi@gmail.com
Janke Tolmay, GOOD Media Manager
Cell: 073 367 1223
Email: janke@forgood.org.za