KOMGA - South African municipalities are owed a staggering R368-billion.
The majority of debt is owed by citizens, who are almost R280-billion in arrears. The situation seems to be a Catch-22 one for municipality in the Eastern Cape. South Africa's dysfunctional rural municipalities are not able to deliver services.
In turn, residents don’t see the need to pay for services that they don't receive.
Roy Dalbock runs the only bed and breakfast in the farming town of Komga, in the Eastern Cape. He says running the business is no child's play, especially when his guests run out of water. When asked whether residents pay their bills or not, Dlabock said,
"Yes, people are paying, yes, and no. There is something else with the ADM system; you just don’t get accounts. So, you just must go there and say, 'Listen, how much do I owe you?' And most of the time it is a thumbsuck. My friend, if we have got water from the municipality, two days in a month, that is a lot.”
Residents of Komga feel that the Amathole District Municipality does not deserve a penny of their hard-earned money. Authorities, however, say, without revenue collection, improving lives is made even more difficult.
Sisi Msiwa, Amathole District Municipality spokesperson, says that paying for services is a two-way street.
"Paying for services goes two ways: Our ratepayers need to understand that they have a role to play. When they pay for their services, it means that the government, as well as Amathole, must provide the type of development.”
The South African Local Government Association (SALGA) says stronger ties between local government and the private sector are needed.
Tshwane Mayor, Nasiphi Moya, speaking on the developments at the SALGA conference, says that there needs to be a stronger call for municipalities to get their houses in order. Moya says that municipalities need to be getting clean audits.
"At SALGA, we were discussing innovative ways in which we can attract the private sector and collaborate with them. But it is going to start with us fixing our legislation to be able to attract private partners.”
SALGA concluded a two-day Municipal Infrastructure Financing Conference in Cape Town. A vital gathering that they feel could go a long way in helping improve the current state of struggling municipalities.