The Democratic Alliance (DA) is calling on Councillor Eugene Modise, the newly elected Deputy Mayor and ANC member of the mayoral committee for finance in the City of Tshwane, to pay his overdue municipal debt of R690,000 as of March 31, 2024.
IOL on Friday reported that Modise was elected as the new deputy mayor of the City of Tshwane under Dr Nasiphi Moya.
The DA emphasises that settling this debt or establishing a payment arrangement is essential, given Tshwane’s constrained finances.
Councillor Jacqui Uys, DA Tshwane Caucus chairperson, stated, “Leaders must set the example. Without a culture of payment, the City will be financially unsustainable in the medium term.”
Uys said she recently met with Modise to provide a handover report for the Group Finance Department, outlining strategies crucial for improving the City's financial position.
These include continuing the work set out in the Mayoral Charter on Financial Rescue and the Budget Funding Plan, aimed at enhancing revenue collection and addressing structural issues.
“The strategy is, in essence, to rebuild critical aspects of the revenue value chain, to improve collections, as well as to address the more structural problems such as an outdated property valuation roll, electricity tariffs which are not cost reflective, and trading services which do not yield a surplus.
‘’As the City’s cash flow improves, which it has under the strategy, so will the credibility of our representations to Eskom. This will place the City in a favourable position to negotiate a debt payment plan which includes the write-off of interest.’’
Uys highlighted the importance of rigorous credit control and the disconnection of illegal connections as necessary steps in the financial recovery process.
While the City’s unaudited financial statements for 2023/24 indicate significant improvement, Uys warned that careful management is still needed to maintain progress.
“Modise has been set up for success by the previous DA-led coalition, but financial sustainability requires accountability and a culture of payment,’’ she said.
As reported by EWN, In response, Modise refuted the claims of owing the city over R500,000 in unpaid bills.
“I am going to sue Jacqui Uys. I owe nothing. There was a debt during Covid-19 when my tenants couldn’t pay, and they were supposed to receive government rebates that they didn’t get.
‘’I took it upon myself to pay that debt, so I am not owing a single cent. I’ve requested the CFO to issue me a letter confirming I owe nothing.”
Modise characterised Uys's statements as politically motivated, stating, “This is politicking. She was the Finance MMC and never raised this issue before. Now she feels it’s appropriate to do so, degrading my integrity, and I will not take it kindly.”
IOL Politics