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The cash-strapped Emfuleni Local Municipality continues to spend money on consultants instead of using in-house officials to do the work. There is nothing to show for the millions spent on consultants as service delivery has collapsed in Emfuleni.

Emfuleni has spent R168 109 431,10 on consultants in the past six financial years for upgrading the infrastructure.

This information was revealed by the Gauteng MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Mzikayifani Khumalo, in a written reply to the DA’s questions tabled in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL).

According to MEC Khumalo, 24 consulting companies were appointed to construct several roads, rehabilitate stormwater drainages, and build bulk water supplies.

It is concerning that all 55 projects are still at the design and supervision level.

Emfuleni has spent R3 950 418,20 on Onboard Consulting Engineers for designing the Vanderbijipark Cemetery and R2 466 179,37 to upgrade the Nanescol Cemetery. R7 395 153,89 has been spent on Thellong Development Services to rehabilitate Evaton multiple roads.

However, no work has been done at the Vanderbijipark Cemetery, and none of the Evaton roads have been rehabilitated.

Most of the projects have either not started or the contractors have abandoned the sites like the Nguna and Lake Side Road.

MEC Khumalo stated that Emfuleni does not have the technical teams to handle the technical requirements of these projects, hence they use consultants. This is an excuse to loot from a municipality that is going through a financial crisis.

For far too long, the DA has been demanding that Emfuleni must refrain from using consultants that do not save money and do not enable the municipality to deliver services to its residents.

The DA demands that MEC Khumalo must conduct a forensic audit of all the work done by these consultants to ascertain whether there is value for money. Furthermore, we demand that a skills audit be conducted to ensure that Emfuleni is capacitated with adequate skills to deliver services to its residents instead of relying on consultants to do the work.

Issued by Kingsol Chabalala MPL - DA Gauteng Constituency Head for Emfuleni North