The municipality forked out around R300 000 to pay councillors' cellphone bills in the past few years. Red-faced over the irregular expenditure, Makana's asking for the money back – and the now-former councillors are not pleased.
The municipality forked out around R300 000 to pay councillors' cellphone bills in the past few years. Red-faced over the irregular expenditure, Makana's asking for the money back – and the now-former councillors are not pleased.
Cellphones and 3G cards used by councillors in the previous council were paid from the municipal bank account, instead of being deducted from councillors' salaries. This emerged in a report accompanying the agenda of yesterday's Finance Portfolio Committee meeting.
The report states that in 2008, MTN so impressed Council with a presentation that, in a follow-up meeting, a package was agreed on "between MTN and the interested councillors" that included 3G cards, laptops and cellphones.
But instead of being registered under the individual councillors' names, the 3G cards were registered under Makana Municipality, from whose account their monthly cellphone bills were duly deducted.
While the report did not disclose any amounts, a reliable source has suggested that the municipality has forked out in the region of R300 000 for this service.
The source said this constituted irregular expenditure according to the Local Government Municipal Finance Act.
The problem has dragged on for more than two years.
At a special council meeting in April last year, it was resolved that Municipal Manager Ntombi Baart would conduct an investigation into how it came about that MTN was given such access to the municipality's account.
A report was to be submitted at the next Council meeting. Councillors were to be provided with statements dating back to the beginning of the contract, saying what they had to pay back to the municipality.
The issue surfaced again at a council meeting in May, shortly before the end of the councillors' term.
Baart announced that councillors owed money for the 3G cards and cellphones that they had been using and were therefore "advised to make arrangements to pay moneys due to the municipality by means of signing an acknowledgement of debt form". Baart said a portion would be deducted from the councillors' allowance paid that month and the remainder from the Councillor Pension Fund.
A former councillor told Grocott's Mail that councillors had been under the impression that their cellphones and 3G card bills would be footed by the municipality. For this reason, there had been a lot of unhappiness in the city hall when Baart told them they had to pay it all back, the former councillor said.
