The DA in Johannesburg strongly condemns the misuse of public funds by the ANC-led administration under Mayor Dada Morero.
English soundbite by Cllr Belinda Kayser-Echeozonjoku letter to Mayor Morero here
At a time of ongoing service delivery failures, the City has spent R585,831.92 to send the MMC for Economic Development to a four-day AIDS conference in Brazil, alongside the MMC for Health.
We question the relevance of this trip to the Economic Development portfolio and why residents must fund international travel during a financial and service delivery crisis. This appears to be an extravagant international trip for a portfolio seemingly unrelated to the conference.
Documents in our possession indicate total costs of R585,831.92, plus a combined R31 032.12 in subsistence allowances.
This comes amid National Treasury intervention over Johannesburg’s equitable share allocation and growing pressure for strict financial discipline, as well as the City’s own cost-containment measures.
It is an absolute disgrace that residents are told there is no money for service delivery, while City phones are cut due to non-payment, residents endure prolonged power outages and weekly water leaks, yet funds appear to be available for international travel.
With ongoing power outages, refuse backlogs and water failures, the DA says the City’s priorities are clearly misplaced.
We have written to Mayor Morero demanding full details of the trip, including approvals, total costs, funding, compliance with cost-containment measures, and the relevance of the MMC for Economic Development attending an AIDS conference under the current circumstances.
Under a DA government led by Helen Zille, municipal employees will be held personally accountable for corruption and mismanagement. We will strictly enforce a zero-tolerance approach to corruption and mismanagement, with consequences where wrongdoing occurs.