City of Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya has revealed that more than 100 of the metropolitan municipality’s staff members were facing disciplinary action.
Moya said this during a media briefing marking her 100 days as the mayor of South Africa’s administrative capital city.
The Auditor-General (AG) had previously flagged a lack of consequence management as a concern. In response, the municipality made progress in conducting forensic investigations and taking disciplinary action.
180 forensic investigations
Moya said 180 forensic investigations have been concluded. These led to recommendations for disciplinary action against 129 employees.
Moreover, 39 cases have been referred for criminal prosecution, while 48 cases have been identified for financial recovery.
“R3.6-billion in unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure was investigated in quarter two. These with findings now being processed by the Municipal Public Accounts Committee for further action. Sixty-seven officials have been dismissed due disciplinary processes. A total of 31 officials have received final written warnings,” she said.
Moya pointed out that 70 cases have been referred to the financial disciplinary board. This is the first time that such referrals have been made. And this is further strengthening financial oversight mechanisms.
She stated that the municipality has established regular audit steering committee meetings. These are chaired by the CFO and executive audit tracking committee meetings, which she chairs.
Monthly collection of R3.3bn in first 100 days
Moya added that the municipality has consistently achieved an average monthly revenue collection of R3.3-billion in the 100 Days Action Plan.
She emphasised that her administration has been focused on financial stability, stating that no municipality can effectively deliver services without the necessary financial resources.
This progress is especially good because December and January are historically tough months for collecting revenue due to holiday expenses, she said.
Moya also mentioned that the municipality collected more money from November 2024 to January 2025 than the same period last year. The Tshwane municipality has also collected over R500-million more than expected for this financial year.
“To ensure fairness and accuracy in our billing system, we have prioritised moving away from estimated billing to actual meter readings. Residents have a right to be billed on actual consumption, not estimates. And this shift is essential in building trust and ensuring that ratepayers are treated fairly.
Meter readings
“We set a target of achieving 95% actual readings within our first 100 days. And I am pleased to report that we have reached 90%. With continued focus, we are confident that we will achieve 95% before the end of the financial year,” said Moya.
Moya explained that managing the municipality’s debtors’ book remains another priority.
She said they have adopted a two-pronged approach. And this involves classifying debt to differentiate between recoverable and irrecoverable amounts. This allows for a targeted focus on areas with the greatest return on investment.
The municipality has also partnered with the AG to conduct an official audit of the corrective measures being implemented.
Moya highlighted that this step is crucial to addressing financial discrepancies. To also ensure confidence in financial reporting for the 2024/25 audit process.
Former mayor Brink disputes the figures
Former Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink said the municipality collected R300-million less than expected from electricity revenue in the second quarter.
Brink, who is now the Tshwane DA caucus leader, said the revenue collected does not show much improvement. He said the shortfall in October, November, December and January showed that the situation was only worsening.
“That’s more or less what we achieved last year. What the city needs to collect to be sustainable is closer to R4-billion. This as per the mayoral charter on financial rescue,” said Brink.
