Durban - Two massive new metros - one of them incorporating Nkandla which is well over 100km away - have been proposed for KwaZulu-Natal.
But opposition parties say the move is an attempt to gerrymander municipal boundaries for next year’s local government elections.
The proposed changes would see the creation of uMhlatuze (Richards Bay) and Msunduzi (Pietermaritzburg) with at least three municipalities being combined in each area.
The national Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department has motivated for the changes, saying they are aimed at “optimising the financial viability” of the municipalities. The department has asked that the proposals take effect before next year's local government elections.
Included in the proposed uMhlatuze metro is Nkandla, President Jacob Zuma’s home town, which is run by the IFP. The municipalities of Mbonambi, uMlalazi and Mthonjaneni are also earmarked.
The IFP’s Blessed Gwala said there was no logic to the proposed changes.
“It is political madness to incorporate Nkandla into the uMhlatuze metro when it is at least 100km away from Richards Bay.”
He added that another proposed move of wards from the Umzinyathi (Dundee) District Municipality to the Ulundi Municipality or vice versa was also a political move.
The Msunduzi metro would involve the amalgamation of the Msunduzi, uMshwati, uMngeni, Mpofana, Impendle, Mkambathini, Richmond and uMgungundlovu municipalities.
The other option is for Msunduzi, Mkambathini and Richmond to form a metro with the other areas to fall under the uMgungundlovu District Municipality.
Another proposal was the breaking up of the troubled Mpofana (Mooi River) Municipality with its wards to be incorporated into the uMngeni, uMvoti and Impendle municipalities if these were not included in the Msunduzi metro.
The Mpofana Municipality was placed under administration last September by the Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department amid allegations of mismanagement.
Other changes involved the alignment of traditional areas’ boundaries.
DA MPL Mark Steele said the national Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department had not provided any cogent reasons for the amalgamation of several municipalities to form the metros.
“We believe it would be better to leave the other municipalities as they are and for the Msunduzi and uMhlatuze municipalities to be changed into metros on their own. This is not a new proposal. This was approved by the municipal demarcation board some years back but was not gazetted.”
He said the DA believed moving wards from Mpofana into uMngeni was “politically motivated”.
“In the 2011 elections, the DA had nine seats and the ANC had 14 in the uMngeni Municipality whereas in Mpofana we took one seat out of eight. To bring Mpofana wards into uMngeni would dilute our position in that municipality.”
He said the party would lodge its objections this week.
But the ANC’s provincial secretary, Sihle Zikalala, denied there was a political motive.
“People will still vote according to their choice.”
Zikalala added that the party supported the changes in principle but believed that it should not take effect before next year’s elections.
Independent political analyst Thabani Khumalo said he believed the changes were motivated by “economic reasons”.
“Combining poor municipalities with wealthier ones would make them more viable and development would be accelerated. Politicians will always protect their turf, so I am not surprised by the opposition parties’ comments, but these appear to be good proposals.”
The closing date for objections to the proposed changes is this Friday, February 27, and objection forms can be obtained from the municipal demarcation board’s website, www.demarcation.org.za.
* According to the Municipal Structures Act, a metro has to have areas of high population density, extensive development, multiple business districts and industrial areas and a centre of economic activity. There must also be strong interdependent social and economic links between its areas.
The Mercury