DURBAN - KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala and Zululand District Municipality mayor Thulasizwe Buthelezi have again publicly clashed over the Zulu royal palaces’ water bills.
This follows a new threat by the mayor to cut off the water supply to the royal palaces and government departments in the district.
The mayor gave the government seven days to settle a R6.6 million debt for water, which he said was owed by the Zulu royal palaces and some government departments.
Responding to the mayor’s threats, spokesperson for the premier’s office Lennox Mabaso told the Daily News that the mayor was doing work that was supposed to be done by administrators. The mayor could not be trusted with the latest figures because he had given incorrect figures in the past.
Mabaso said the government would have to verify whether these figures were correct before making payments.
“The figures articulated by the mayor would have to be verified. We know that in the past the mayor was corrected by his chief financial officer after he issued a statement saying Kwakhangelamankengane’s (palace) bill was R81 000 a month which was incorrect. “In principle, the premier has instructed all the departments to pay outstanding debts owed to the municipalities, and as we speak government chief financial officers and their municipal counterparts are communicating on these matters,” Mabaso said.
The ultimatum flew in the face of intergovernmental relations, he added.
The mayor hit back, saying he was leading the debt collection process in line with the auditor-general’s findings. He urged the government to verify the figures within seven days, saying his deadline still stands.
In a statement issued by the mayor on Sunday, he blamed Zikalala, saying municipalities have been put under enormous pressure to provide services, and while ordinary citizens pay for their water and electricity, the provincial government continues to display an arrogant culture of non-payment for the services it receives.
The mayor urged the premier to lead by example and ensure that provincial government departments pay the municipality the amount of R6.6m for the outstanding water accounts or face a cut-off.
According to the statement, the Office of the Premier is liable for KwaKhangelamankengane Palace’s R1 082 452.87 and Nyokeni Palace’s R353 529.23 water bills.
King Misuzulu lives in KwaKhangelamankengane Palace while Nyokeni Palace is occupied by the late king Zwelithini’s fifth wife, Queen Nompumelelo Mchiza.
The statement also listed the Department of Health, saying its 28 facilities owed R1 890 963.79 in total. Social Development’s Babanango offices owed R95 944.39, while the Department of Transport’s seven facilities owed R176 227.23. The biggest culprit was the Department of Education, which the mayor said owed R3 027 667.40.
Daily News