The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (SAMWU) says fixing local government requires a complete overhaul of the municipal funding model.
The union argues that municipalities rely too heavily on revenue collected from residents, while mismanagement and corruption continue to undermine service delivery.
SAMWU says withholding funds and austerity measures will not solve the crisis and has called on government to address the systemic challenges facing municipalities.
The Union’s General-Secretary Dumisane Magagula, “What needs to change is the funding model of local government. Currently, the model does not speak to service delivery. It doesn’t enable municipality to deliver services. The funding model should not be over-reliant on collecting from residents only. It should go much broader than making sure that we get revenue and correct revenue even from business. kind of budget that goes to municipalities needs to be relevant for those municipalities.”
Meanwhile, SAMWU held a National Day of Action on Thursday to highlight a range of issues affecting municipal and water sector workers, including local government funding, wages, outsourcing and working conditions.
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