The new executive mayor of Matjhabeng has hit the ground running.
“Our brand has been dented and tarnished, but we will stop the looters. There will be accountability,” he says.
After 40 days in office, David Khalipha has employed people in strategic positions, including much-needed qualified civil engineers to prepare for utilising the R2,8 billion funding from national government.
The money has been made available to assist the municipality with the aging infrastructure and the disastrous sewer challenges.
Khalipha has given the municipal accounting officer until the end of March to fill all vacant municipal positions with competent and qualified personnel. No outside contractors will be used in the running of Matjhabeng.
When he took office, Khalipha discovered that 95% of the municipality’s functions have been outsourced to contractors. This despite the fact that there are still employees who do not have resources to carry out their duties.
He says the municipality was supposed to have received an intergovernmental grant of R187 million in December.
“Because of gross political oversight mismanagement, we only got R87 million of this. We immediately paid Eskom (R30 million), Sedibeng (R50 million), SARS (R50 million) and municipal worker third parties (R8,5 million). We also used R8 million for infrastructure and community service.”
Khalipha visited the municipal workshops and discovered a vast municipal fleet in disarray. Most of the stranded vehicles, however, only needed a battery or new tyres to be on the road again.
“We immediately addressed the situation and can confirm that the vast majority of these vehicles, including the refuse trucks, have been returned to service,” says the mayor.
These trucks are brand-new and were bought in April 2021.
The newly restored fleet will be integrated back into usage to boost service delivery. This will coincide with the launch of several cleaning campaigns across Matjhabeng, starting Saturday (22/01).
Prominent businesspeople in Welkom have pledged their support, vehicles and manpower to assist Khalipha and Team Matjhabeng in cleaning up the municipality.
The mayor calls on residents to assist with the clean-up this weekend.
