Rustenburg - Capacity must not be used to cover lack of accountability, the National African Federated Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Nafcoc) in North West said on Tuesday.
"Municipalities in the North West are in shambles because of rampant corruption and lack of accountability by the decision-makers who hold top official positions," spokesperson Tshepang Ramosepele said.
"Lack of capacity cannot therefore be used as these are highly-skilled individuals who choose to do wrong.
"We therefore believe that more emphasis must be directed at holding top officials accountable," Ramosepele said.
He said the chamber welcomed the initiative by the North West Provincial Treasury to build capacity among the junior supply chain and treasury officials in the municipalities.
"We are, however, concerned that 25 years later, government only realises now that employees do not have capacity. We believe that the lack of capacity by junior officials who only implement decisions and directives from their principals should not be used as a scapegoat to account," he said.
"We also believe that in some cases, these top officials such as municipal managers and chief financial officers also succumb to victimisation or collude with politicians to loot public funds and thus crippling service delivery," Ramosepele said.
"The chamber is also calling for government to not only capacitate officials but also entrench a conducive environment for them to report illegal or unlawful directives without fear of victimisation or losing their jobs."
Ramosepele called on the provincial government to take the people of the province into their confidence and timeously communicate progress, failures and achievements by various municipalities.
"This, we believe will empower communities and promote trust," he said.