CAPE TOWN - The Democratic Alliance (DA) will open criminal cases against 10 municipal managers from nine municipalities.
The party said the officials it had identified had repeatedly failed in "financial management and accountability".
They include six municipal managers from the Free State, two from the Eastern Cape, one from the North West and one from the Western Cape.
“These officials have overseen municipalities that have repeatedly received disclaimed audit opinions, failed to implement Auditor-General recommendations and allowed serious financial management failures to persist,” the DA said.
“In several cases, municipalities have recorded consecutive years of disclaimer opinions, with some failures continuing for up to a decade.”
The party said the chargers would be pursued under Section 173(1) of the Municipal Finance Management Act, which provides for offences relating to gross negligence, material accounting irregularities and the provision of false information to the Auditor-General.
“The DA’s plan is clear: appoint competent officials on merit, enforce accountability without exception, and professionalise municipal administration through continuous skills development,” the party said in a statement.