“It is clear that the Makhado Municipality does not have the ability to understand or manage finances,” commented the District Agricultural Union (DAU) on the report of the auditor general (AG) on the municipality’s financial statements.

Mr Stephen Hoffman, chairperson of the Soutpansberg DAU, said that the latest AG report was bad news for the taxpayers in the Louis Trichardt area.

“Over many years, taxpayers diligently built up assets for the benefit of the community. These assets are in the process of being stolen and lost in what seems to be uncontrolled corruption and mismanagement,” Hoffman said.

According to the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA), section 63, it is clear that the accounting officer is responsible for the management of the assets of the municipality. The accounting officer has to ensure that the municipality maintains a management, accounting and information system that accounts for the assets of the municipality. The AG report indicates that he was “unable to confirm or verify… the completeness, valuation and rights and obligations of property, plant and equipment of R743,6 million” due to the asset register’s not being maintained in a logical format. Due to inconsistencies between the valuation roll and the asset register, “land registration in the name of the municipality at R25 million could not be confirmed as being correctly valued in the financial statements.”

Hoffman said that it is shocking to read in the report that supporting documentation for receipts and receivables were not submitted. “The accounting system of the municipality is ripe for corruption and theft,” the DAU said.

The MFMA indicates in section 173 that the accounting officer can be held criminally liable for mismanagement. Hoffman said that it was high time that criminal charges be brought against municipal managers, whether previous or acting.

“It is time that overburdened taxpayers force municipal managers to comply with legislative provisions,” Hoffman said.

The agricultural union made it clear that organised agriculture would not pay property rates unless the auditor general could reasonably assure ratepayers that the Makhado Municipality was able to adhere to even the most basic of accounting practices.