Tshwane Mayor reflects on first 100 days in office

Moya reported back on the successes of the multi-party coalition government over the past 100 days.

She replaced the Democratic Alliance’s Cilliers Brink, who was toppled as mayor after a vote of no confidence against him in September. This is after complaints of a lack of service delivery.

At the start of her term, Moya singled out six priorities to address. These included financial stability, infrastructure development and the better enforcement of by-laws.

Delivering her 100-day action plan success speech, Moya admitted that there were several challenges that her administration had faced in the beginning.

"We were under no illusions about the challenges that lay ahead. While we do not wish to dwell on the past, it is important to acknowledge the difficult circumstances we inherited."

Moya added the city’s budget has been unfunded for several years.

This is as the City faces challenges with covering expenses, including the provision of basic services and capital investments.

"Tshwane’s debt stood at over R11 billion, with R6.76 billion owed to Eskom alone. The demand for capital investment over the next decade exceeds R65 billion, yet the City’s current annual capital budget is only R2.3 billion at this rate, it would take 36 years to meet the 10-year demand.

"Chronic underinvestment in repairs and maintenance left the city’s aging infrastructure vulnerable to frequent breakdowns, leading to weekly power and water outages for residents. Vandalism and criminal activities, such as cable theft and illegal connections, placed additional strain on our infrastructure and further reduced the city’s ability to provide reliable services.

"The city was in a state of neglect, with dirty streets, failing infrastructure, and significant disparities in service delivery between affluent areas and townships or informal settlements. The contrast between affluent suburbs like Waterkloof and impoverished areas like Winterveld remains deeply troubling. This inequality is compounded by unemployment, with 34.9% of the city’s over 4 million residents struggling without the dignity of work." Moya said.

She said that over the past three months, over 240 000 final notices for outstanding debt were issued, generating R285 million in cash.

Over 60 000 electricity disconnections were also made across the city.

"We set a target of maintaining at least R50 million in cash reserves per month. As of January 2025, our cash reserves stand at R368 million. This financial cushion is critical in ensuring that we have contingency funds to respond to unforeseen challenges.

"We have also made significant progress in managing our creditor obligations, particularly addressing our debt to Eskom. Since taking office, we secured an agreement to ring-fence the historic Eskom debt of R6.76 billion. This arrangement prevents the debt from accruing further interest, provided that we maintain payments on our current account.

"I am pleased to report that we have successfully honoured this agreement, and the historical debt has been reduced from R6.76 billion to R6.1 billion. This is a crucial step in stabilising the City’s finances and ensuring a reliable electricity supply for businesses and households,” she said.

-AGSA Report-

Moya said the city has also introduced a comprehensive Audit Outcome Remedial Action Plan.

The Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) recently released its audit findings for the 2023/24 financial year. The report reflected a stagnation in the City’s audit outcomes, with Tshwane receiving a qualified audit opinion for a second consecutive year. This as 180 forensic investigations have been concluded in the metro.

"We have introduced a comprehensive Audit Outcome Remedial Action Plan. This plan is designed to tackle the root causes of the audit findings and bring about lasting improvements. The City has formally requested the AGSA to conduct an official audit review of the corrective measures we have implemented.

"This will ensure that we fully address the qualification areas and that the Auditor-General has confidence in our financial reporting ahead of the 2024/25 audit process. The AGSA also flagged lack of consequence management as a concern, and we are pleased to report on the ongoing forensic investigations and disciplinary actions, with the following key outcomes reported.

"One-hundred and eighty forensic investigations have been concluded, resulting in 129 cases where disciplinary action is recommended against employees, 39 cases referred for criminal prosecution, 48 cases identified for financial recoveries, R3,6 billion in unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure was investigated in Quarter 2, with findings now being processed by the Municipal Public Accounts Committee for further action.

"Sixty-seven officials have been dismissed due to disciplinary processes, while 31 officials have received final written warnings, 70 cases have been referred to the Financial Disciplinary Board – the first time such referrals have been made – further strengthening financial oversight mechanisms.

"We have also strengthened oversight mechanisms through regular Audit Steering Committee meetings, chaired by the Chief Financial Officer, and Executive Audit Tracking Committee meetings, which I chair. These structures ensure that financial governance remains a top priority and that we track our progress with clear accountability,” Moya said.

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