Beaufort West part of R5.5 billion unaccounted for by 22 municipalities

During the Auditor-General’s report on local government audit outcomes for 2019/20, it was disclosed that a total of 22 municipalities were unable to provide evidence for financial statements to the net value of R5.5 billion. The only Western Cape municipality included in these findings is Beaufort West, an ANC-led local government.

Derrick America, MPP, DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Local Government said: As Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Local Government, I will request that the Auditor-General invoke the powers invested in her office to ensure that accountability ensues at that administration. According to the Public Audit Act, any accounting officer or authority has to provide proof of implementing recommendations made by the Auditor-General in the annual report, if any were given.

Residents of Beaufort West deserve far better than to have their public funds mismanaged. This is the very municipality which owed Eskom R29.1 million in electricity bills earlier in the year. Furthermore, in 2019, Beaufort West also spent more than R2 million to only build 21 toilets.

The report is a reflection of the country’s fiscal health prior to that of the Covid-19 pandemic. Already, within that financial year, 30% of all local governments in South Africa were running budget deficits.

Despite the over R1 billion spent on consultants to help address capacity and skills problems, more than half of the reasons why these services were rendered ineffective were due to lack of records and documentation.

It is the Western Cape which still sets the example of good governance where 23 municipalities achieved unqualified audits, of which 14 were without any findings. This is in addition to Ratings Afrika reporting earlier this year that the top 5 best run municipalities in the province are led by the DA. The City of Cape Town remains the only financially sustainable metropolitan municipality in the country.

But this need not be confined to the Western Cape. The elections this year provide South Africans a chance to elect governments that place residents’ best interests above ANC self-enrichment. We urge all South Africans to ensure that they are registered to vote and that they use their constitutional right to make a difference.

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