GEORGE NEWS - The 2025/26 George budget has been rejected by the Garden Route Ratepayers’ Alliance (GRRA) and Business Café after the concerns they had submitted to the George Municipality during the public participation process have to date not been responded to.
According to Jacques Wessels, chairperson of the GRRA, one of their main concerns is that the rates and taxes have been raised at double the inflation rate.
“We want to know why. The municipality says the influx of people into the city necessitates increased spending, but a large portion of the infrastructure expansion spend is received as grants from National Government, and in addition, new private developments pay high capital contributions to the municipality. Furthermore, the more people there are, the more people pay rates, raising the income of the municipality. We want to know what percentages of these incomes are spent on what.”
Dr Dennis Farrell of the Business Café says it seems the funding of the budget is ‘revenue increase orientated’ with ‘no evidence of proficiency increases and cost reductions’.
One item he singles out is sales of goods and rendering services costs to the ratepayer that have increased by 86.16% over the last three-year period. “This equates to a 28.72% increase per year and a 638% increase above inflation - based on an average inflation of 4.5% over the three years. Similarly, electricity increased by an average of 20.84% per year and 463% against the average inflation of 4.5% over the three years.”
Farrell also asks for clarity on certain amendments in the adjustments budget. There was a surplus of R52.8m (before transfers and subsidies) on the original budget for 2024/25, which, during the adjustments budget approved in February this year, turned into a deficit of -R17.2m (for the 2024/25 budget), and grows in the 2025/26 budget to a deficit of -R28.8m.
Dennis Farrell from the Business Café
Farrell is furthermore concerned about a 51.78% increase in interest on loans between last year and this year’s budget, compared with a total increase of 54.82% over the past three-year budgeting period.
He also points out what seems to be some inconsistencies in figures, for example, in the budget document, reference is made to an adjustments budget revenue of R4 825.5m on one page, but it is listed as being R3 709.5m on another.
Another concern is a steep 44.98% of total expenditure being budgeted for employee-related and contracted services. This is contrary to a National Treasury recommendation that remuneration should not exceed 25% to 40% of a municipality’s total operating expenditure.
Jacques Wessels, chair of the GRRA.
CFO responds
George Municipality’s CFO, Riaan du Plessis, commented as follows on the various points of concern:
• Sales of goods and rendering services costs: The calculation is multifaceted and the statement by the GRRA flawed and misleading, as it does not cater for the growth in consumption patterns, mSCOA [municipal standard chart of accounts] accounting and compliance reporting as required by National Treasury. Furthermore, the basis for the above calculations is incorrectly done, therefore not comparing apples with apples, and therefore results in completely incorrect ratio analysis interpretations. Sales of goods and rendering of services includes the transport fees (ticket sales) from buses and also include further rollouts of different routes, thus diluting the basic calculations attempted by the GRRA.
• Deficits in 2024/25 and 2025/26 budgets: The deficit referred to is a non-cash related accounting matter that relates to the depreciation of the buses and has no impact on consumer tariffs.
• Differing figures for the adjustments budget revenue: The difference is the capital grants. The R4 825.5m includes the capital grants and the R3 709.5m excludes the capital grants.
• The funding of the budget is increase-orientated: Subsequent to the approval and implementation of the 2023/24 MTREF [Medium-term Revenue and Expenditure Framework], the national economy took a severe turn for the worse. The prime lending rate was hiked several times by the South African Reserve Bank, and along with the destructive financial consequences of Eskom’s persistent load-shedding, the general cost of living and CPIX [Consumer Price Index Excluding Mortgage Costs] inflation rate increased beyond the Reserve Bank’s target range. This brought unexpected hardship to many households who struggled to make ends meet on a monthly basis. In drafting the 2025/26 MTREF budget, we therefore strove to address this by various steps, such as keeping rates and tariff increases to an inflation-related increase level; ensuring sustainable, affordable capital expenditure levels; pushing for below inflation related (expenditure) growth, revising the indigent support programme and credit control measures and increasing assistance to low-income earners and pensioners.
• Employee-related and contracted services: The total contracted services should not be included as part of the remuneration calculation, as it contains expenditure that does not form part of remuneration, for example, the Go George bus service. The amount for contracted services that could be included as part of remuneration is only the consultants’ fees of R75m - well within expected norms. The significant additional conditional grant funding awarded to George Municipality in the past three financial years have contributed to the overall contracted services cost, as this is the most cost-efficient way to ensure that capital projects are executed successfully within the grant conditions, without bloating the staff structure permanently to deal with temporary funding requirements.
• Interest on loans: This is to provide for the repayment of the 2024/25 interest on loans as well as the new loan for 2025/26 that will be taken up. No loan was taken up during the 2023/24 financial year, thus the reason for the movement in the year-on-year variance.
George Municipality CFO Riaan du Plessis
George-begroting kry nie applous van almal
George Herald-joernalis Michelle Pienaar het met die opposisiepartye gesels oor hulle siening oor die nuwe begroting:
Met die uitsondering van die ACDP, blyk die meeste opposisiepartye in die George-raad hoogs ontevrede met die 2025/26-begroting, soos ter tafel gelê deur burgemeester Jackie von Brandis.
Die Good-party, VF Plus, Patriotiese Alliansie (PA), ANC en EFF verwerp George se bykans R5-miljard begroting vir 2025/26, wat volgens hulle, inwoners se behoeftes misken.
Johan du Toit van die ACDP
Johan du Toit van die ACDP sê egter hul party het, as koalisievennoot van die DA, saam aan die begroting gewerk om die bes moontlike uitkoms vir George se mense te bewerkstellig.
“Alle departemente is een vir een onder die loep geneem en behoorlik gefynkam,” aldus Du Toit. Maria Greeff, sweep van die PBI, reken hulle party is trots om deel te wees van die nuwe begroting. “Ons neem kennis van die begroting, en het dit nie verwerp of ondersteun nie,” het Greeff gesê.
Klagtes en gedagtes
Die Good-party se koukus in George het teen George-munisipaliteit se 2025/26-begroting gestem, wat byna R5-miljard beloop. “Ons glo dat hierdie begroting opgeblaas en ondoeltreffend is en nie die werklike behoeftes en bekostigbaarheidskwessies van George se inwoners prioritiseer nie,” het raadslid Rosa Louw gesê.
“In plaas daarvan om tasbare verligting te bied, hef die begroting hoë eiendomsbelasting en plaas dit steeds ’n onnodige las op reeds sukkelende huishoudings.”
Volgens Louw was die openbare deelnameproses onbevredigend. “Belastingbetalers se skriftelike voorleggings is geïgnoreer, en geen betekenisvolle betrokkenheid is gefasiliteer nie. Dit ondermyn die demokratiese proses en toon duidelike minagting vir die stemme van die gemeenskap.”
Rosa Louw van Good
Adv. Gert van Niekerk, adjunk-leier van die VF Plus in die Wes-Kaap, het benadruk dat hul party nie George se begroting steun nie, weens gebrek aan deursigtigheid en betrokkenheid van opposisiepartye.
“Die DA, met minder as 50% ondersteuning, het verhogings goedgekeur sonder die insette van die opposisie," het Van Niekerk gesê.
“Sommige verhogings oorskry die inflasiekoers (2,8%) met 300%. Geen besparings uit projekte soos die sonkragaanleg of slim watermeters is aangedui nie. Die begroting toon ’n R37 miljoen tekort teenoor ’n R53 miljoen oorskot in 2024/25. Munisipale rekeninge het sedert 2021 met ongeveer 42% gestyg, wat inwoners finansieel onder druk laat, met die minimum verligting.”
Adv Gert van Niekerk van die VF Plus
Die PA verwerp George se begroting, sê raadslid Samuel Vorster, omdat dit nie die gemeenskap se behoeftes aanspreek nie.
“IDP-vergaderings in ses wyke, met slegs 90-100 bywoners, weerspieël nie die meer as 30 000 inwoners se insette nie. Die PA eis ’n eenheid vir publieke deelname, wat in George ontbreek. Die DA-koalisie spog met ’n 1,8% groeikoers, maar ongunstige beleide onderdruk klein besighede. Biljoene uit die BFI-fonds (Budget Facility for Infrastructure) skep nie werk nie.
“Die PA vra bewyse van werkskeppingsprojekte, meer voordele vir plaaslike besighede uit Go George-befondsing, en deursigtigheid oor kontrakte wat groot maatskappye bevoordeel. Sportvelde in Maraiskamp, Pacaltsdorp, Rosemoor en Blanco bly verwaarloos. Die PA eis dat agterstallige elektrisiteitsrekeninge geskrap word waar daar geen inkomste in huishoudings is nie.”
Samuel Vorster van die PA
ANC se streekwoordvoerder, Moyisi Magalela, het benadruk dat hul koukus in die George-raad die begroting ten sterkste verwerp. “Dit is duidelik dat die prioriteite wat in die begroting weerspieël word, nie ooreenstem met die lewensrealiteite van die meerderheid nie, veral die swart en werkersklasinwoners,” het Magalela gesê.
“Die voorgestelde tariefverhogings sal diegene wat reeds sukkel om in ’n verswakte ekonomiese klimaat kop bo water te hou, onregverdiglik belas. In plaas daarvan om verligting te bied en inklusiewe ontwikkeling te bevorder, verdiep hierdie begroting ongelykheid en sosiale probleme.”
Moyisi Magalela van die ANC‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’
