JOHANNESBURG, Gauteng — As the November 4 local government elections approach, Joburg mayoral candidates are intensifying their calls for comprehensive local government funding reform, arguing that the current national budget allocation severely cripples metropolitan service delivery and infrastructure maintenance.
The primary flashpoint is the equitable share allocated to local government in the national budget. During his recent Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS), Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana confirmed that national departments will receive 47.4% of non-interest spending, provinces will receive 42.6%, and local government will receive just 10%.
Mayoral candidates argue this 10% allocation falls drastically short of what is required to address the metro’s pressing financial woes and assist low-income households. Action SA, Rise Mzansi and the MK Party are demanding the equitable share be hiked to at least 18% to help alleviate the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and ensure proper service delivery in resource-constrained areas.
Lukhona Mnguni, the Rise Mzansi Joburg mayoral candidate, described the current funding model as an “insult to local government.”
“There is an acceptance that we need to rework the funding formula for local government,” Mnguni noted. “The president made this undertaking in his state of the nation address last year already, but there is reluctance from treasury to do this because we are now caught up in a chicken and egg conversation. Do you increase funding allocation to a sphere of government that is seen to be misusing the resources it has?”
Echoing these sentiments, Action SA’s Ayanda Allie highlighted the systemic undervaluing of the local government sphere. “In terms of the resource allocation from Treasury, I think there’s a huge injustice that’s been done to local government,” Allie stated. “I also think that that period is inverted and we ought to really take a look at what matters most.”
Disputes Over Municipal Finance Management Act Amendments
Beyond the budget allocation, candidates are also pushing back against National Treasury’s plans to amend the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA). The proposed amendment would allow the Treasury to directly appoint Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) in municipalities, a move several parties argue violates the constitutional independence of local government.
Vuyo Zungula, the African Transformation Movement (ATM) Joburg mayoral candidate, strongly rejected the centralization of power. “We must reject this notion that national treasury can be this super ministry in our country to an extent it wants to encroach into the municipalities,” Zungula said. He emphasized that the Constitution clearly outlines municipal roles and appointment powers, suggesting instead that the criminal justice system should be utilized to deal with financial wrongdoers.
Dr. Thanti Mthanti of the MK Party reinforced this constitutional argument, stating, “Local government is an independent sphere of government. The constitution is very clear about what national government can do, which is mainly oversight and provide specific frameworks. It cannot interfere directly with the legislated powers of municipalities.”
ANC Welcomes Interventions but Urges Caution on CFO Appointments
Offering a more nuanced perspective, ANC Joburg mayoral candidate Dada Morero welcomed the interventions announced by Minister Godongwana but expressed a desire for greater financial support.
“Would have wished to get more, but what it then means would have to wait for all the schedules that he will then bring so that we can engage further,” Morero explained. “We need more money and especially into infrastructure investment… the discussion on the table with the minister should be how do we bring more capital, more investment into our infrastructure with the assistance of course of national government.”
Regarding the MFMA amendments, Morero cautioned that simply shifting the appointment power is not a silver bullet. “I don’t think it’s always the solution to say by taking a function to appoint it resolves the problem,” he noted, adding that any amendments require extensive discussion and that the ultimate focus must be on appointing highly competent CFOs.
With less than two weeks remaining until the November 4 local government elections, the competing parties have reaffirmed their commitments to eradicating corruption and appointing qualified, fit-for-purpose leaders, while urgently urging residents to exercise their democratic right to vote.
