Alfred Nzo District Municipality Clarifies Position in Response to Sunday World Article

In response to the article published by the Sunday World on January 7, 2024, the Alfred Nzo District Municipality would like to provide clarity information regarding the ongoing situation involving the suspended Municipal Manager, Mr Zamile Sikhundla.

The statement reads, “It is imperative to correct any misconceptions and set the record straight. The assertion that the Municipal Manager’s suspension is linked to a letter he wrote to the Executive Mayor concerning questions from the Sunday World is deemed malicious, mischievous, and misleading.”

The Executive Mayor opted not to respond to questions from both the Sunday World and the Municipal Manager’s letter, given that the inquiries revolved around allegations of corruption. The municipality’s stance remains that such allegations should be reported to relevant law enforcement agencies for proper investigation, a principle they stand firmly by.

“We encourage individuals with any information related to corruption within the Municipality, including employees and councilors, to report such matters to the appropriate law enforcement agencies. This collaborative approach aims to uncover and combat corruption while preventing unwarranted accusations.” reads the statement.

The Municipality and the Executive Mayor are open to thorough investigations by law enforcement agencies into any allegations.

We are committed to full cooperation, contrary to the implications made by the Sunday World and the suspended Municipal Manager.

Alfred Nzo Municipality says it is crucial to highlight the facts surrounding the suspension of the Municipal Manager:

1. Performance on Service Delivery Grants: The Municipal Manager, as the head of administration and Accounting Officer, has a legal duty to ensure the implementation of service delivery programs within the applicable laws and funding conditions.
2. Introduction of Risk Adjusted Strategy (RAS): Due to poor performance on service delivery grants, a Risk Adjusted Strategy (RAS) was introduced by the Premier & COGTA MEC in March 2023. The Municipality reported inadequate performance against RAS targets, leading to a letter from the MEC advising the Executive Mayor to implement relevant consequence management.
3. Council Direction: The Municipal Council, following the MEC’s directive, considered the failure to meet RAS targets unacceptable. Consequently, the suspension is grounded in the failure to perform on major service delivery grants, entirely unrelated to the Sunday World questions or the Municipal Manager’s letter.

“The Executive Mayor and the municipality refrain from commenting on the misapplication of Regulation 11 of the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) as referenced in the Municipal Manager’s letter. Such a misinterpretation of local government laws is both surprising and concerning.”