DA-led coalition left Joburg City in deep debt, says mayor Gwamanda

Joburg mayor Kabelo Gwamanda says when the coalition led by his party Al Jama-ah took over from the DA-led coalition government this year, it found a “near-bankrupt municipality" with more than R6.6bn in unpaid supplier invoices.

Delivering his first state of the city address, after he was elected mayor a month ago, Gwamanda said the city’s finances remained strained. 

“Following the tabling of a conceptually flawed budget by the multiparty government and the resultant clandestine management of the city’s finances, the GLU (government of local unity) found itself in a budget rebasing exercise in the adjustment budget process, and is grappling with finding innovative, novel and financially prudent mechanisms to ensure that service delivery continues,” said Gwamanda.

According to him, by the end of June 2021, the GLU’s audited financial statements reflected a city with a healthy cash balance of R6.6bn.

“After consistent denial of the true state of affairs by the multiparty government, the GLU approved a short-term loan facility to begin to clear the unpaid invoices.

"The reality is that without a financially sound city we will not be able to invest as required in our core municipal mandate of delivering basic services, ensuring the security of electricity and water supply, efficient roads infrastructure and the many other service delivery mandates that demand immediate attention,” Gwamanda said.