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ANC Spokesperson Pule Mabe. (Felix Dlangamandla, Netwerk24)
- The ANC NEC has resolved to strengthen its monitoring and evaluation capacity in the different spheres of government.
- He made this decision during a special NEC on local government on Monday.
- The party has expressed “serious concern“on the state of the country’s municipalities.
The meddling of politicians in administrative affairs is one of the many issues that concern the ANC’s national executive committee (CNE) with regard to the functioning of the country’s municipalities.
This, as it urges its own members deployed in local government to respect the distinction between political and administrative responsibilities, while ensuring that they hire qualified officials.
On Monday, the NEC, during a special session focused on local government, promised to strengthen its monitoring and evaluation capacity in all three spheres of governance.
According to a post-NEC statement released on Wednesday, it was an attempt to ensure discipline, accountability and political management for ANC deployments.
The country’s municipalities have clearly focused amid reports of corruption in the acquisition of Covid-19 resources.
READ | Auditor General Kimi Makwetu noted that poor government control was the gateway to the Covid-19 graft.
Precisely this week, the Deputy Minister of Finance, David Masondo, while speaking at the National Council of Provinces, called for action to address political interference in the operation of municipalities, which included having a voice in the awarding of bids and contracts.
The statement by the party’s national spokesperson, Pule Mabe, said that the NEC had received a report from the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, reflecting Makwetu’s latest findings.
The report, which was “watched” with “grave concern,” reflected on the state of governance, service delivery, financial management and administration in some municipalities. It also raised the alarm about the bleak finances of others.
“The report also raised concerns regarding the financial viability of various municipalities and noted that their inability to raise sufficient revenue to support their activities has been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic,” Mabe said.
He added that this also resulted in the inability to settle debts with Eskom and the different water boards.
The CNE, while praising the progress made in the development of the district development model, which would allow a collaborative approach in planning and executing projects, asked the government to also activate a rapid response capacity linked to the model.
The NEC, which also received a report on the upcoming local government elections, urged its structures to prepare for the 2021 municipal elections and help prepare communities amid the Covid-19 pandemic and its harsh consequences.
New rules
This included a set of rules for the selection of candidates for the polls.
“The rules are designed to strengthen local government by identifying the best councilors, improving the oversight capacity of councilors, building a strong and clean local government, and promoting more representative and inclusive municipalities,” Mabe said.
Some of the rules adopted require capable candidates who have experience and diverse forms of knowledge in areas such as finance, procurement, economic and community development, service delivery, and infrastructure.
Candidates are also expected to be popular in their neighborhoods and armed with a proven and respected track record. They are also expected to complete a series of modules from ANC’s OR Tambo School of Leadership.
All candidates will be evaluated regarding criminal and disciplinary matters.
The ANC’s Legislature and Governance Subcommittee also submitted a report in response to a recent Constitutional Court ruling ordering Parliament to provide for the possibility of independent candidates running in national elections.
“The NEC discussed these issues in the context of proposals for broader electoral reform, including the synchronization of national, provincial and local elections and to introduce constituency-based representation at the national and provincial levels,” Mabe said.
He added that the NEC had reaffirmed the party’s support for the constitutional requirement that any electoral system must generally result in proportional representation to promote inclusiveness and representativeness.
“The NEC emphasized that any discussion on electoral reform must aim at strengthening the responsibility and responsiveness of democratic institutions and public representatives and building a more effective and capable developmental state,” Mabe said.
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