The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Elias Motsoaledi Local Municipality has slammed the municipality’s leadership for what it calls “wasteful and unnecessary spending” on the 2025 State of the Municipality Address (SOMA), accusing officials of splurging R1.4-million on a single-day event while residents continue to suffer from inadequate service delivery.
According to DA councillor Sipho Mmaboko, the municipality — which is already battling financial constraints — hosted the SOMA on July 25 at the Groblersdal Rugby Stadium, a decision he says inflated costs and drained funds that could have been used for basic services.
Breakdown of expenses
“The decision to host SOMA at the stadium came with increased costs,” Mmaboko said. “The biggest chunk of money — R262, 000 — went to camera setup, live editing, and social media streaming. Another R170, 000 was spent on two marquee tents, plus R20,000 for an additional VIP tent.”
Mmaboko further revealed that R117, 600 was paid for LED daylight screens for live feeds, while R163, 875 went toward printing speech booklets.
He said another R110, 955 was used on desktop microphones, controllers, and recording equipment.
The municipality also reportedly hired 30 taxis to ferry residents from various wards to the event. This cost R104, 080.40. Catering expenses amounted to R180, 000, with an additional R45, 000 spent on lunch.
“This level of overspending is unacceptable when the municipality is struggling to deliver essential services like road maintenance, re-graveling, and tarring of internal roads,” said Mmaboko.
Villages impoverished
“Villages remain in darkness because there’s no budget for high-mast lights. Yet millions are blown on a one-day event.”
Mmaboko said the DA believes the municipality could have saved a significant amount by hosting the SOMA at the council chamber. Or at a community hall, or any other municipal building. It could also use community radio stations to reach residents.
“This money could have been redirected to address service delivery backlogs,” he added.
“Instead, it was used for glitz and glamour. While communities continue to face high levels of crime and poor infrastructure.”
Municipal Manager Regina Makgata has been called upon to account for the expenditure. She is also expected to ensure that future events prioritise cost-effectiveness and community benefit over extravagance.
