The North West Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) says it will summon the Ditsobotla Local Municipality to appear before the committee after it failed to make an appearance today (Wednesday) to account for the 2020/21 audit reports.
North West SCOPA’s chairperson, Job Dliso, said this is the second time that the municipality has failed to appear before the committee.
“This municipality owes Scopa two previous financial reports, they have failed to come and account for the public money. We waited for them today. We have sent them questions. But they have sent us a postponement, during the time when they were supposed to appear. There was no courtesy to send us a postponement a day or two days before, which was not going to be approved by the way.
“We want Ditsobotla to come. We want to take a look at its finances for the past financial years. They have been spending money. We want to make sure that they account for the money that they spend. What is shocking now about their postponement, they have indicated to us that the workers have not been paid their salaries yet.
“We ask ourselves where the money is. Why are the workers not paid? Those are the things that we wanted them to come and account for. We want them to tell us their turnaround strategy for Ditsobotla.
“So from where we are standing as SCOPA, we have no option but to summon them to come and to look at all the finances, where there is misconduct open cases at the law enforcement agencies,” Dliso said.
He said as the oversight body they are disheartened by the appalling living conditions of the residents of Ditsobotla.
“As an oversight body we have seen the municipality deteriorating. No service delivery. Workers of the municipality are not paid their salaries. At some point, we have seen two mayors and two municipal managers in the same municipality. You can see even now that even after the recently held by-elections Ditsobotla is still not stable.
“If the municipality was stable it would be here right now to come and present its plans. So that the people of Ditsobotla will know how the new leadership is going to help them,” he said.
