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The Ekurhuleni Government of Local Unity (GLU) will table the same failed budget for a third time on Thursday, following two unsuccessful attempts to pass a budget that ActionSA could not, in good conscience, support, as it was detrimental to both residents and workers.

Recognising that the same budget being presented once again fails to confront a collapsing local economy and the brutal cost of living crisis choking every household, ActionSA rejected it outright then, and we reject this recycled version now.

It is apparent that this administration inflates budgets for tender cronies instead of building internal capacity. It chooses contracted services over insourcing and, to add insult to injury, hikes electricity tariffs at almost double the rate approved by NERSA.

In his 2025 State of the City Address, Executive Mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza grandstanded about insourcing. He announced the approval of a municipal insourcing structure to break the GLU's addiction to contracted services. He promised 394 security guard posts and 199 cleaning and supervisory positions. Those jobs never materialised.

Instead of implementing its insourcing commitments, the same administration slashed them during the adjustment budget, cutting insourcing provisions by 50%. The 600 jobs the Mayor paraded on the council floor were reduced to just 300 overnight. Now, the GLU has an opportunity to correct this betrayal. Instead, it is doubling down on failure by inflating the budget for contracted services to R7.9 billion.

We have made it clear that our support for the budget remains available, contingent on a simple principle: that it puts the residents of Ekurhuleni first. ActionSA will not rubber-stamp failure. We will only vote for this budget if our demands are met. No insourcing, no vote. No tariff relief for residents, no vote.

The GLU wants to plunge Ekurhuleni families deeper into poverty. While the cost of living continues to crush households, this administration is proposing electricity tariff increases of 15.54% and 18.44%. This is a direct assault on the finances of residents who are already struggling to make ends meet.

ActionSA says enough. We demand that these unjustifiable increases be scrapped in full. Instead, all electricity tariff increases should be capped at 9.01% across every category.

Issued by ActionSA Ekurhuleni Mayoral candidate Xolani Khumalo