'Municipalities pocketing R1.7bn of workers pensions' - Godongwana
South African Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced that 69 municipalities have had funding withheld for failing to pay over R1.7 billion in employee pension contributions. The Treasury is taking this action to enforce financial accountability and address systemic mismanagement of public funds.
Why it matters
The crisis highlights severe governance failures in local government that threaten service delivery and the financial security of public sector workers.
JOHANNESBURG - Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said municipalities are deducting more than R1.7 billion from workers' salaries, but the money never reaches their pension funds.
This is one of the key reasons Treasury has withheld funding from 69 municipalities.
Godongwana said government wants accountability but also aims to help struggling municipalities improve.
"It is this kind of behaviour that we're trying to settle and deal with. We are not only interested in punishing, but we're also interested in supporting municipalities," Godongwana said.
Treasury announced the withdrawal earlier this week after revealing that 69 municipalities were failing to adhere to financial management rules.
They include the metros of Johannesburg, Buffalo City, Nelson Mandela Bay and Mangaung.
READ | Treasury insists municipal funding freeze will not impact services
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in