Durban - The release of a report looking into allegations of overspending in a multimillion-rand street-lights contract is imminent, and the City says those implicated in wrongdoing will be dismissed.
It was reported by one media outlet that the eThekwini Municipality paid R579 million in a matter of months to several companies to fix street lights.
While the municipality has acknowledged over-expenditure on the contract, which was originally valued at R91m, it has denied that R579m was spent.
But it has not revealed how much was spent over and above the original contract amount. The City has, however, confirmed that the contract is being investigated by the City Integrity and Investigations Unit (CIIU).
The matter has put the municipality under pressure, with opposition parties calling for the report to be made public as soon as the investigation is completed.
In a statement, the municipality said it acknowledged that the contract was overspent, and that when this came to light, an independent investigation had been instituted.
On the sidelines of the City’s Energy Summit, mayor Mxolisi Kaunda told “The Mercury” yesterday that he expected the report to be released soon, and added that if it found that some of the City’s officials were complicit in wrongdoing, they would face disciplinary action that could include dismissal.
“The investigation is at an advanced level. They (CIIU) are about to produce the final report, so that report will come through to the City manager and action will be taken,” he said.
Kaunda said those involved would be suspended while the investigation and processes proceeded.
“We are a city that must deal with the challenges of our communities, so when you continue stealing, you are not assisting us to deliver to our customers. Our customers are becoming impatient, so we can’t keep those who are stealing on this side (employed by the City) while we are expected to deliver,” he said.
ActionSA leader Zwakele Mncwango called for the investigation to be made public once it was finalised.
“The CIIU always does investigations and those reports are never released under the guise that they are protecting the people who are implicated, but it is the taxpayers’ money that we are talking about here.
“They (the City) admit that there was over-spending, but are not forthcoming about the amount. The investigation is not just about the amount that was spent, but about what happened and how it happened,” said Mncwango.
He said the amount alleged to have been overspent could have changed the lives of many young people.
“The municipality did not need to outsource this work, especially because the companies did not even buy the lights. They collected them from the municipality and installed them. The municipality could have hired young people to do this work,” he said.
IFP councillor Mdu Nkosi said the city manager must fast-track the finalisation of the report so the veracity of the allegations made could be tested.
“As soon as the investigation is completed, we will take the matter to other bodies tasked with investigation (like the public protector). If the allegations of wrongdoing are confirmed, we will demand consequence management for those implicated,” said Nkosi.