MAKHADO (LOUIS TRICHARDT) - “It is unethical if the local municipality and the community do not support locally. Every rand spent locally, creates value to eight people in this area.”

A unanimous decision of the Chairpersons Association (CA) states that the CA should start a drive amongst all people and the local municipality to support local businesses. This decision was made by the Management Committee of the Chairpersons Association during their meeting on March 16.

It has come to the attention of the members of the CA that the Makhado Municipality supports professional people, for instance lawyers, architects, quantity surveyors and engineers from other municipalities but not their own.

It has also become known to the CA that the Makhado Municipality is supporting contractors and sub-contractors from other municipalities, for instance from Tzaneen, but not their own local areas.

“This happens while we have the best skills available within the boundaries of the Makhado Municipality. This really concerns the CA because this approach is already leading to a skills drainage,” reads the statement.

The CA has instructed the chairperson, Mr André Naudé, to ask the Makhado Municipality for a list of contracts that have been allocated during the past two years. The list should state the details of the contracts, the contractors, organizations and suppliers, as well as professionals to whom these contracts were given. The list will be required in order to conduct proper research.

The CA regards it of paramount importance that all in the community support local businesses in order to create wealth for all the people.

“Every rand spent locally creates value to eight people in this area. It is actually immoral to spend our resources outside our area in order to create wealth in other areas, while it is badly needed in our own area,” is the urgent appeal of the CA.

“If it is true that the municipality requires its residents to pay taxes here while spending our resources in other areas, then reasons will be required from the municipality to explore and investigate whether these reasons are valid. If these reasons are valid, then the CA will have to assist the local people to overcome these reasons in order to obtain contracts in the future. If these reasons are not valid, then this problem will be dealt by the CA in a very serious manner,” state the CA.

This “support locally” culture should be applicable to all the people staying in this area in order to create wealth by keeping the residents’ rands within the boundaries of the area. In that manner, value can be added to the local area and not to other areas.

“This area is in desperate need of value to be added in order to create more jobs and opportunities for our people. The above are subject to the condition that our goods and services should be competitive in price and standards,” says Mr Naudé.