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The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality is alarmed by the failure of the Municipal Public Accounts Committee (MPAC) to perform its duties. In the recent council sitting of 14 February 2023, another two reports were referred to MPAC for investigations. This happens at the back of 10 reports that still need to be investigated.

The committee is plagued by indecisiveness and inaction. Since its inception, no report has been tabled, two reports had to be taken off the council agenda, on two occasions. The committee seldom have meetings and struggles to have a quorum. It does not adhere to its set calendar or programme of action.

The Standing Rules and Orders of the municipality provide guidelines on how to resolve these issues but are never put into practice. The main aim of the committee is to interrogate and investigate the Auditor General’s report, as set out in Chapter 12 of the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA).

To date, no report has been dealt with. In a municipality that has over R6 billion in unauthorised, irregular, fruitless, and wasteful expenditure dating back to 2012/13, and has recently added another R111 million in the 2021/22 financial year, this should be a top priority of the committee. But is receiving no attention at all.

In an attempt to resolve these issues, the DA wrote to both the MPAC chairperson, in June 2022, and the Speaker of the council, in January 2023, requesting their intervention, but both of these attempts fell on deaf ears. Clearly showing how disinterested the MAP-16-led coalition is in the functionality of the committee and the accountability of the municipality. No resolutions to the issues plaguing MPAC are in sight.

The DA, therefore, alerted Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) in the Free State and wrote to the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) requesting their intervention. A functioning MPAC is the backbone of a functioning and accountable municipality and we will do everything possible to ensure that the committee functions as it should.

Issued by Moshe Lefuma - DA Councillor Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality