Although it has been almost 30 years since the dawn of democracy, South Africa cannot be truly free unless economic freedom can be achieved – but this cannot be done if local government faces constant corruption.
These are the sentiments of Nelson Mandela Bay mayor, Retief Odendaal, who recently reiterated that the metro has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to corruption.
Odendaal referred to an alleged corruption network uncovered within the metro’s Electricity and Energy Directorate.
Last month, seven officials from the Electricity and Energy Directorate were placed on precautionary suspension.
This follows a preliminary investigation into allegations of fraud and corruption that emanated from the recent explosion of an electricity substation at the Coega IDZ.
The initial investigation by internal audit was handed over to the Hawks and the SIU for further investigation.
“We immediately handed it over to the authorities to investigate so that we can root out corruption in this city,” Odendaal said.
A few days later, residents were issued with a precautionary warning of possible interruptions in electricity supply and delays in returning electricity after loadshedding.
This was a direct result of some employees in the Electricity and Energy Directorate preventing their colleagues from entering the offices and from doing their work. This in turn led to the call centre being non-operational.
“We believe these actions are related to the suspension of seven officials from that directorate for their possible involvement in fraud and corruption,” said the mayor.
However, he mentioned that they believe this to be only the tip of the iceberg, since Nelson Mandela Bay has R20 billion cited in irregular expenditure in its annual financial statements.
“Every cent of this money represents funds that were spent in contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act, as well as Supply Chain Regulations.
“Now that we are turning the tide against corruption, our administration can once again focus on what matters: improving service delivery and creating an environment where business can thrive in order to create jobs.”
He said that with the right mindset and commitment to clean governance, Nelson Mandela Bay can work again.
“When government works, it is especially the poor that benefit. One such example is the fact that we got the housing delivery programme in the Bay moving forward again.
“In the 2020/21 financial year the city managed to build only 27 houses. In the 2021/22 financial year the city built 28 houses. By February this year, the city has already built more than 400 houses, well on our way to our target of 800 new RDP houses for poor households.
“When officials and politicians steal from government, they effectively steal from South Africans, which leads to lost opportunities to grow our economy and create jobs.
“Corruption takes away our ability to create an inclusive economy and should be considered the number one enemy of the state. This is why the coalition government in Nelson Mandela Bay has taken a zero-tolerance stance against all forms of corruption.
When asked for an update regarding the situation, MMC for Electricity and Engineering in Nelson Mandela Bay, Lance Grootboom, said that things have settled down for the most part.
The employees who prevented their colleagues from working, and acted disruptively, have reportedly gone back to work.
“Everything has calmed down as far as I understand. Everyone is back at work and they are working again.
“There are probably one, two or three people that are still unhappy about the suspension [of the seven Electricity and Energy Directorate officials], but that is it,” Grootboom explained.
Meanwhile, the mayor has reiterated that the coalition government is focused on “getting Nelson Mandela Bay working again” by all means.
“The coalition government in Nelson Mandela Bay is committed to upgrade all 152 informal settlements, so that we can provide dignity to the poor by improving basic service delivery to all concerned.
“That is why a key focus area of our government is to find electricity, as well as water and sanitation solutions, for all poor communities.
“It is imperative that we create an environment that is free of corruption, so that this can lead to businesses thriving and more jobs for the unemployed.
“Together, we can get Nelson Mandela Bay working again,” said Odendaal. “That is why it is so important that all of us take our future into our own hands and ensure that we are a part of the solutions for a better tomorrow.”
