This year, taxpayers residing in the Emfuleni Local Municipality will be under even more pressure due to the ANC government’s decision to appoint 19 senior researchers and support staff at an amount of R15,1 million per year.
This step by the ANC government proves that it is not at all concerned about service delivery in Emfuleni (Evaton, Sebokeng, Vaal Oewer, Vanderbijlpark, Vereeniging). The city council could have used the money to appoint 66 general workers per year.
The FF Plus voted against the said appointments in a general council meeting, and also opposed the proposed appointment of a researcher for the ANC’s chief whip. The new staff members will be divided if researchers are appointed for the respective political chief whips and support staff for the office of mayoral committee members.
These appointments will inflate the wage bill budget for this financial year from R1,2 billion to R1,3 billion. The total budget is R6,8 billion – 21% of which is spent on salaries.
The FF Plus made it clear that the decision is detrimental to Emfuleni residents, particularly because the Municipality is already under immense financial pressure. The Municipality’s failure to pay bulk power and water suppliers as well as other service providers has become a monthly pattern.
This has resulted in a vicious cycle where the Municipality is forced to increase tariffs while its service delivery is inadequate, which hampers development and growth in the private sector. This leads to an impoverished population and unemployment, which in turn further reduces the Municipality’s income.
The FF Plus is committed to protecting its voters’ interests and will not hesitate to oppose unreasonable proposals.
Read the original article in Afrikaans by Gerda Senekal on FF Plus
