Transcript: 53rd Extra-Ordinary Council Meeting

Roll call procedure agreed at whippery

00:00:01Can I hear who the councillor is?

00:00:05Oh, it's Councillor Munyayi.

00:00:07Councillor, what is your point of order? Because we are doing roll call.

00:00:12Yes, Madam Speaker, apologies. We had a whippery meeting, I think it was early this week. And then I think it was also agreed that instead for you to do the whole roll call, it will take time. Maybe if the whips from political parties can just give you the list of the councillors that are not present.

00:00:35I still want them

00:00:36[inaudible] Yes. I'm not sure, maybe I've discussed it

00:00:40Yeah, no, whippery did discuss that. So, can we hear if the DA's whip is in the meeting. DA, how many councillors do you have online currently? And who's LOA? Councillor Avant-Smith.

00:01:01Councillor Masera will answer. Thank you.

00:01:05Councillor Masera, please.

DA attendance and leave of absence

00:01:08Thank you, thank you very much, Speaker. Good morning to you and all the colleagues. We have only 10, nine councillors that put in the LOAs, Speaker. Otherwise, all the rest of the councillors are in this meeting.claim

00:01:27So what is the number of the rest? And who are those councillors that are not here?

00:01:35Okay, thank you, Speaker. The councillors that are on LOAs today is Councillor Carl Jacobs due to party business, Councillor Roberts, party business, Councillor Stewart will leave at 11:15, Councillor Niemand, party business, Councillor Landis, study leave, Councillor Bittkau, party business, Councillor David Dewes, party business, Councillor Jack Hoon, party business, Councillor Hughes, party business and Councillor Louw, party business, Speaker. Thank you.

00:02:16So how many councillors do you have in? So you've given us 10 LOAs and not nine. Jacobs, Roberts, Stewart, Niemand, Landis, Bittkau, Dewes, Hoon, Hughes and Louw. Okay, ANC. ANC. How many are in, Masera?

00:02:51Madam Speaker, I'm still counting.

00:02:53Just hold on, just hold on, Ma'am. Just hold on, Councillor. Masera, Councillor Masera, how many are in?

00:03:03Thank you, Speaker. I'm still doing my count. I'll let you know as soon as I've got that information with me ASAP. So just [inaudible] while I'm doing the count. Thank you.

Smaller caucuses report attendance

00:03:14Speaker, I've got my hand up. Councillor De Lange, can I make a suggestion?

00:03:23Let's hear you, Councillor De Lange. Let's hear you, De Lange.

00:03:27Thank you. Speaker, please start with the smaller caucuses, then we can go back to the bigger caucuses. Obviously, the whips and assistant whips must count the people on the device.

00:03:43Okay. Dankie. Okay, let's start with you. Freedom Front Plus, how many are you? Who's that? Who's that?

00:03:53Councillor Hoon. Councillor Hoon. I am present in the meeting. I'm not on LOA.

00:03:58You see? Okay. It's fine. Your caucus will come back to us. Freedom Front Plus,

00:04:07Afrikaanskom ons gaan.

00:04:09We are, we are full house.

00:04:12Four? Okay. Okay.

00:04:14Thank you, four.

00:04:15IFP.

00:04:17Yes, Speaker, full house, four.

00:04:22IFP.

00:04:23Morning, Speaker. For the IFP, so far we are five, and then Councillor Khanyile have a challenge to come through. So it's Councillor Makhuba, Councillor Mkhize, Councillor Nkomo, Councillor Manganyi and Councillor Mabaso who are in the meeting. Five of us.

00:04:43Thank you.

00:04:44And then Councillor Khanyile have a challenge. Thank you.

00:04:47Okay. PA.

00:04:51Good morning, Madam Speaker. The Patriotic Alliance is 10. We are all in, online.

00:04:58Thank you.

00:04:58We have one open space at Council, so we're 10. Thank you.

00:05:03Thank you so much. UDM. Are you here?

00:05:19Present, Speaker.

00:05:20Right. UIM. Are you here? APC, are you here? African Independent Congress, are you here?

00:05:44Yes, yes, yes, Speaker, I'm here.

00:05:46Thank you.

00:05:47Very much here, still available. Thank you, Speaker.

00:05:49Is your caucus here?

00:05:52Yes, my caucus is here.

00:05:54Thank you.

00:05:55My caucus is full, 100%, yes.

00:05:56Okay. AHC, are you here?

00:06:03Madam Speaker, yes, the caucus of the AHC is present. Thank you.

00:06:08Okay. PAC, are you here? Al Jama-ah, are you here?

00:06:20Morning, Speaker. Yes, two of us here, just waiting on MMC Thapelo to confirm.

00:06:26So MMC Okay.

00:06:29Yes, so we are two here.

00:06:30Okay. Who did I miss? COPE, are you here? EFF. ActionSA.

00:07:02We are here, Speaker. I'm not sure of our chief whip, otherwise we are here.

00:07:06Who's this? Zitha, how many are you here?

00:07:12[inaudible] our whip.

ActionSA attendance and leave of absence

00:07:16EFF, I'll leave you out. ActionSA, are you here? And how many are you?

00:07:24Greetings to you, Madam Speaker. So far we are 25, so others they are still struggling to join.

00:07:3125? Who's struggling to join?

00:07:35Yes, yes.

00:07:36Who's struggling to join?

00:07:37They are joining, they are joining as I speak. And then in terms of the councillors that won't be joining us today, they have sent their LOAs.

00:07:47Can I get the LOA?

00:07:50Yes, it's Councillor Joyce Ngobeni, and then Councillor Ntlemeza, Bulelani Ntlemeza. Yes, the rest they will be joining us.

00:08:01Okay. So you only have two LOAs, but you currently only have 25 in, and you are 44. So that only registers Councillor, that only registers for 27, which means 17 of you have not connected. Thank you.

00:08:21They are, they are joining. I can see them on the lobby. Just that the time when I was counting, they were 25. Yes, Madam.

00:08:29You must tell us, we'll come back to you to hear how many you are. STC ATM, are you here? ATM.

00:08:42Speaker, Speaker, Speaker, my hand is up.

00:08:46Yeah, we will talk to you now. We will talk to you now. ATM, are you here?

00:08:53Greetings, Speaker. Yes, Speaker, the entire caucus of the ATM, we are all here. Thank you.

00:08:59Yoh! And it's full of you, neh? Who said his hand was up?

00:09:07Councillor Moshapo, Speaker. I just wanted to supplement the LOAs I would have forwarded to my chief whip, Councillor Mangena. I think he might have made a mistake and forgot that Councillor Moticoe is also on LOA, party business. Thank you, Speaker.

00:09:24Which party is this?

00:09:27ActionSA.

00:09:29Yeah, but I'm coming back to ActionSA. They will give me the whole number of who is here and they will give me the LOAs. Can I go to EFF, are you settled and do you know who is here and who's not here? That says to me they're not around. Yes.

EFF unable to report numbers

00:09:56Speaker, most of the EFF members are struggling to get in, but then I've been communicating. Even the chief whip has not been able to enter because he's struggling to get in. Immediately after we have resolved that problem, I will give you the full return of how many EFF members that are here. Because so far, we do have members that are on leave. [inaudible]

00:10:18Have you

00:10:19[inaudible] and the chief whip is trying to find out again from those who are struggling to get in, what is the challenge. Thank you.

00:10:26Can you please do that for me. ACDP.

00:10:35Good morning, Madam Speaker. The full caucus of the ACDP is present, we are three. Thank you.

00:10:41AfrikaansBaie dankie.

00:10:42Who did I forget now? Do I go to the ANC now? Have I asked all the small parties? I've got Freedom Front Plus, IFP, PA, UDM. UIM has not responded. APC has not responded. AIC has responded. AHC has responded. PAC has not responded. Al Jama-ah has responded. COPE has not responded. ActionSA and EFF, we are waiting for you to get your house in order. Can I go to the bigger party, to the ANC?

ANC and DA counts; 202 in chamber

00:11:21Good morning, Madam Speaker.

00:11:24Thank you, Madam Speaker, good morning. I have counted 85 on the screen, but I was still counting. I'm short with a few councillors, but I'm checking them. I've counted 85 so far. Thank you, Madam Speaker.

00:11:39Do you have LOAs?

00:11:41No, I don't have any LOAs from the ANC, Speaker.

00:11:45Okay, thank you so much. DA, Democratic Alliance, are you settled?

00:11:56Yes, thank you, Speaker. We are settled. Our LOAs are eight, which means we have 62 councillors in this meeting. Thank you so much, Speaker.

00:12:11Okay. Can you confirm your LOAs? Who are they?

00:12:20Okay, thank you, Speaker. Councillor Jacobs, party business. Councillor Roberts, party business. Councillor Stewart will leave at 11:15. Councillor Carl Niemand, party business. Landis, study leave. Bittkau, party business. Dewes, party business. Hughes, party business. Yeah, that's all. Thank you, Speaker.

00:12:45Okay, so they add up to eight, so that's fine. Can we have a few minutes so that we can just quickly count Action, ActionSA. I have given you enough time.

00:13:05Madam Speaker, COPE is responding.

00:13:08Okay, COPE is here. ActionSA.

00:13:15Greetings to you, Madam Speaker. Yeah, indeed, we are still standing with the same number. So, I'm not sure, maybe they are

00:13:23You are only 25. You are only 25, thank you. EFF. Economic Freedom Fighters. I hope you didn't leave some of them in Limpopo, please. Okay, EFF is not responding. Can we count? They will scream to us if they are ready to respond. Colleagues, without the EFF, we have 202 councillors in the chamber, as your homes are chambers. We have 202 of you.

00:14:15Speaker.

Cllr Bittkau's LOA error and EFF count of 15

00:14:17Councillor Bittkau, I see your hand is up, but I believe there's an LOA for you.

00:14:23Speaker, thanks. That's the problem, it doesn't make sense to me. I'm online.

00:14:28Thank you, Councillor Bittkau. So now we have 63 DA councillors. Who is screaming?

00:14:38It's Councillor Baloyi, Speaker. Can you hear me?

00:14:40I can hear you, Baloyi.

00:14:42Yes. I'm sure they're still counting. Councillor Zitha spoke earlier, and I'm here as well. So, but I'm not sure about the rest.

00:14:52Councillor.

00:14:54So I'm sure the chief whip will update you.

00:14:57Councillor Baloyi. Councillor Baloyi. You know we're going according to what was discussed at whippery. And what was discussed at whippery, unless you guys were not at whippery. What was discussed at whippery is that the whips of every caucus will tell us how many councillors of theirs is online, how many councillors has given us LOA, and we will then take our numbers from there. You are the only caucus that's unable to tell us how many councillors you have on the platform.

00:15:38Okay, noted, Speaker.

00:15:43So for us, there's no EFF in the meeting.

00:15:51Okay, noted, Speaker. But you know you are wrong.

00:15:56I'm not wrong, I'm asking you your numbers.

00:15:59No, we are here, you can't say that. It's only a few who are here.

00:16:05So can you count yourselves? Can you count yourselves?

00:16:11isiZuluNingasiphazamisi lapho. [inaudible] sikhuluma ne chief whip yethu lapho.

00:16:17EFF, EFF. I'm going to mute everybody. I am asking the EFF, are you still counting?

00:16:30Come on, Speaker, I told you the chief whip cannot enter here.

00:16:34Okay.

00:16:35He's logging, but he cannot enter.

00:16:37Right.

00:16:37And then there are councillors that, we are still counting.

00:16:39Okay. I hear you, Chair. I hear you, Chair. EFF Chair. EFF Chair. EFF Chair, I hear you. I hear you, Chair. Chair, can you count so that we can come back and we have all the numbers. Currently, we have 203 councillors in the meeting. EFF, as we go, you will tell us your numbers. Thank you. Chair, is that okay?

00:17:14Perfect, Speaker.

00:17:16Thank you, Chair. Thank you. Thank you, Chair. Right, STC, can we go?

00:17:25Yes, we'll now proceed.

00:17:27Speaker.

00:17:29Yes, Ma'am, who's calling?

00:17:33Hello, Speaker, it's Councillor Radebe.

00:17:35Yes, Councillor

00:17:37Yes, I've been counting and I've checked, there are 15 councillors of the EFF online right now.

00:17:44Okay. Thank you, Councillor Radebe. So 15, that makes us 218. Neh? So it makes us 218. We were 203, and you are 15. That is very progressive. Thank you, Councillor Radebe. Right, we are going. We are going.

Applications for leave of absence and apologies noted

00:18:06We're now proceeding to applications for leave of absence.

00:18:16Okay, political parties, we've done the DA's leave of absence. We know their leave of absence. The ANC has indicated they have no leave of absence. Any other political party with leave of absence? ActionSA, do you have leave of absence?

00:18:40Madam Speaker, greetings to you and greetings to the house. No, it's not dry. I did give you earlier on the LOAs. Or you didn't put them down?

00:18:50No, no, no. No. You said others are, you said others are still joining. I'm sitting with legal.

00:18:58Even, Madam Speaker, even if you didn't take

00:19:01No, no, no. Councillor Munyayi. Councillor Munyayi. Councillor Munyayi, we are five people here recording, and you are asking me whether I have paper. One of your members said there's LOAs.

00:19:23Let me tell you again, Madam Speaker.

00:19:26Can I hear that, can I hear them?

00:19:28I said, yes, Councillor Joyce Ngobeni, party business. Councillor Bulelani Ntlemeza, party business. Councillor Moticoe, party business. And Councillor Chuma, party business.

00:19:45Thank you for that, but that you did not call out earlier. Thank you so much. The PA, I know you are one down. Everybody else has Has the MMC arrived, Al Jama-ah? Or should we put an LOA or what?

00:20:04MMC is here, Speaker.

00:20:06Okay, thank you. So now we are 219. Thank you so much. Okay, LOAs, can we note the apologies?

00:20:20Noted.

00:20:21Thank you so much, Councillor Louw.

00:20:23Noted, Speaker.

00:20:25Thank you.

00:20:26Noted, Speaker. Noted.

Chair of Chairs tables Items 1 and 2

00:20:32Our third item is recommendations to Council.

00:20:36Chair of Chairs. Councillor Marema. Chair of Chairs.

00:21:01Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I hope I am audible.

00:21:05You are.

00:21:06I rise to table the legislature report.

00:21:10Thank you so much, Chair of Chairs.

00:21:16We're starting off with the first item, which is the approval of the 2024/25 City of Johannesburg Group Integrated Annual Report for the year ended 30th June 2025.

00:21:30Thank you so much. We are now on the speakers Just do item two as well.

00:21:38And the second item is an oversight report on Okay.

Cllr Christians questions roll call process

00:21:42Whose hand is it? Councillor Christians. Councillor Alex Christians.

00:21:50Thank you, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I had my hand up before you went to the Chair of Chairs to table, so if you'll just indulge me, Speaker, if you can hear me. Speaker, I'm just a bit concerned about the manner in which we've done the roll call, because let me give you an example. PA said all present on the group, and when you announced apologies, you said there's one PA councillor not there. Can we get assurance from legal that the process is all above board? Thank you.

00:22:21Councillor Alex, the PA has 11 councillors in the City of Johannesburg. One councillor has resigned. He has resigned. He wrote a letter to say that he is resigning. So currently, they are on 10. Is that good enough for you?

00:22:58Well, Speaker, if I may, I did not, I used that as an example. My question was, can we get assurance from legal that the process we just followed is above board? Thank you.

00:23:14The process is above board. Legal is right next to me, and legal has been doing the right thing and asking me to do the right thing. I think you heard that it was only ActionSA that we had a problem with, but it was solved and resolved. So legal, if you can show your faces to show that you are happy with the process. If you can see the screen, you will see that legal is next to me, behind me, and with me. And I don't think I would flout the rules. I'm scared of courts. Thank you so much. And this was the decision of the whippery to do it this way. Whippery asked to do it this way. I was going to call out every councillor, by one by one, but the whippery decided to do it this way. Thank you, colleagues. Can we proceed? Councillor Kaldine. Councillor Kaldine. Councillor Kaldine.

PA exchange with Speaker

00:24:48Thank you, Madam Speaker. Just a point of clarity. What is Councillor Christians' obsession with the Patriotic Alliance?

00:24:57Okay, thank you, Councillor Kaldine. Danko.

00:25:01Thank you, Speaker.

00:25:02Thank you. Councillor Ponsonby, do you want to repeat what Councillor Juweira said?

00:25:13Good morning, Madam Speaker. It's very important to take your chronic in the morning and not just talk.

EFF login problems referred to IT

00:25:17Ai, come, come, Kaldine, come, come. Councillor Khonkhobe, I believe that's the Chair of EFF.

00:25:29Greetings, Madam Speaker. We are still having a challenge with councillors that are trying to log in, but they can't.

00:25:35Okay.

00:25:36Will you please assist on that, because here we have Councillor Ntsako Mabunda that cannot enter here. We are also having our chief whip, Tshepiso, who can't.

00:25:45Okay.

00:25:46We are also having Mabambala that are struggling to enter, please.

00:25:49Okay. Okay, I will ask IT to look into it so that we can get them in. It might also be where they are that they are struggling with internet or anything, but I will ask IT. IT, please look into those people that are unable to log in. Thank you so much, Chair of the EFF, Councillor. Can we now move to the, can we now move to the speakers list? Oh, you, no. STC needs to table the second item. Apologies, councillors.

MPAC oversight report presented

00:26:24Councillors, our second item is an oversight report on the 2024/25 annual report of the City of Johannesburg by the Municipal Public Accounts Committee.

00:26:36Thank you so much, STC. Member in charge, Chair Raseruthe. Chair Raseruthe, are you in?

00:26:54Thank you very much. [no speech]

00:29:05Thank you so much, member in charge.

00:29:08Speaker, come back!

ActionSA supports report with reservations

00:29:11Zitha, you cannot be controlled, whether it's online, physical or whatever. Councillor L. Modukanene from ActionSA.

00:29:29It's Lebogang Modukanene, Speaker.

00:29:33Yes, it's Councillor L. Modukanene. Modukanene. Thank you. Your minutes are going, hey.

00:29:43Madam Speaker, the Executive Mayor, Chief Whip of Council, members of the Mayoral Committee, Chairperson of the Municipal Public Accounts Committee, residents of the City of Joburg, honourable councillors.

00:30:00councillors dumelang. Action SA rises in support of the adoption of the Municipal Public Accounts Committee oversight report with reservations. Speaker, the Municipal Public Accounts Committee exists for one purpose and one purpose only, to hold the executive accountable. Not to settle political scores, not to rewrite history, not to campaign, but to ensure that public money is protected, governance failures are exposed,

00:30:30and those entrusted with public office answer for their decisions. Having considered the oversight report before us, Action SA is deeply concerned that it paints the picture of a city whose governance systems continue to deteriorate. The report confirms Johannesburg's regression from an unqualified audit opinion to a qualified opinion for the core departments.

00:31:00It confirms repeated material findings by the Auditor-General, weak procurement controls, ineffective contract management, poor record management, and perhaps most concerning, the continued failure to implement meaningful consequence management despite years of recommendation. Speaker, this finding should have been the focus of today's debate. The people of Johannesburg expect the executive to explain why

00:31:30this continues to repeat themselves year after year. They expected accountability, they expect leadership, instead they get politics. Instead of accounting for the findings contained in the report, the city is deflecting. And I would like to comment on what the mayor did a couple

00:32:00of sittings ago. The mayor stood in council and instead of answering, the mayor chose to prosecute Herman Mashaba in chambers. Mr. Mayor, you may prosecute Herman Mashaba politically, but you cannot prosecute this report. This report speaks for itself. You accuse Herman Mashaba of corruption, you accuse him of illegally establishing GFIS, you accuse him of procuring spy equipment, you accuse him

00:32:30of appointing General Shadrack Sibiya, you accuse him of inheriting a functioning city and destroying it. Mr. Mayor, nine of those allegations answer a single finding in this report. They do not explain the qualified audit for core departments. They do not explain repeated Auditor-General findings. They do not explain failed procurement controls. They do not explain weak consequence management. They do not explain why the same

00:33:00governance failures continue under your administration. In fact, Mr. Mayor

00:33:47You have 30 seconds left. You have 30 seconds left. There's a hand, can you sit down? Can you sit down? There's a hand. Can you sit down, councillor? Councillor Modukanene, can you sit down?

00:34:08isiZuluUyahleka

00:34:08for what? Can I get the person that the hand was up?

00:34:18Eh greetings, Speaker. Greetings, Speaker. Eh the speaker on the podium, she's out of order. She's out of order. This council is not a counselling of the mayor. So [inaudible]

00:34:32Thank you, councillor. I've got your point, thank you. I do have your point. I do have your point, councillor. Councillor, I have your point. Councillor, I have your point! Can you wrap up? You have 29 seconds to wrap up. Modukanene.

00:35:00When does accountability begin? Does it begin only when we speak about former administration, or does it begin when we explain your own? Speaker, many years ago I worked for a bank that underwent a forensic fiscal audit. Management eventually realized something profound. The people who created the problems were not the people who were going to solve it, and this speaks to the City of Joburg under from

ACDP debate input

00:35:27Your time is up. Your time is up. Your time is up. Can you mute her? Your time is up. Councillor S. Mkhonza.

00:35:44Yeah, thank you very much. Shalom, shalom, Madam Speaker. And allow me to first acknowledge our almighty God, eternally existent in three persons, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, the creator of the heavens and the earth. Thank you, Madam Speaker. Greetings to all councillors, the ACDP constituents, residents of

00:36:28Poor performance is a collective team hobby. Fast. The ACDP caucus expresses its appreciation to the Executive Mayor for acknowledging that an unqualified audit is not a definitive measure of excellence. We urge the GCFO to avoid hiding behind technicalities by claiming the term "clean audit" does not exist in accounting standards. We applaud the Joburg Market's exceptional performance in maintaining a clean audit for three consecutive years. With the above points established,

00:36:59we highlight the following critical concerns requiring immediate and urgent action. One, the UIFWs. While we applaud the four billion referred to the disciplinary board, this is a drop in the ocean compared to the massive 30.3 billion post-audit UIFW balance hanging over this council. Two, the underutilization of conditional grants. Three, infrastructure and maintenance and investment. The SDBIP performance of 59%, which is a disappointingclaim

00:37:3014% decline compared to the previous year. One of the reasons cited for the drop in performance is the aging infrastructure. However, the ACDP caucus, we argue that it does not make sense for JPC to report a 122 million surplus whilst we are lacking in infrastructure development and maintenance. Is this one of the ways to siphon money to comrades for fictitious performance? Number four, we go to internal controls. The ACDP caucus is yet to see the so-called targeted time-bound audit action plans. Kindly advise where to locate them. Progress requires strong institutional controls. Every announcement made by the City of Joburg must be backed up by verifiable reports. Number four, on debt management and revenue collection. A credible, unfair, consistently enforced debt management strategy is essential if we are to reverse the current trajectory, improve revenue collection, and safeguard the long-term financial sustainability of the city. Residents and businesses are more likely to respond positively to collection efforts when they see government itself is leading by example.claim

00:38:35Apologies, Councillor Mkhonza, you have 10 minutes left. 10 seconds left. Sorry.claim

00:38:44Okay, Madam Speaker. And with regard to the four qualified audits, it's worrying, Madam Speaker, because of the three months failure by some departments to submit variance reports is unacceptable. Madam Speaker, Transport Department is performing badly. KPIs 20 and 21,

00:39:03Your time is up, councillor. Your time is up. Thank you so much and apologies that I didn't alert you earlier.

00:39:11Ah, as always.

DA on MPAC report and AG finding

00:39:14Councillor Suddaby. Councillor Suddaby. Suddaby, Suddaby.

00:39:26Thank you, Madam Speaker. All protocol observed. I'm speaking on item two, the oversight report of the 24/25 annual report of the City of Johannesburg by the Municipal Public Accounts Committee. It must be said in this house and to the residents of our beleaguered city, that the Municipal Public Accounts Committee of the City of Joburg submits this report with reservations. Receiving a qualified audit from the Auditor-Generalclaim

00:39:56has done nothing to rein in the wanton disregard for sound financial management of this administration. When the committee requested accountability on the material irregularities, the response was a haughty "the AG got it wrong." Madam Speaker, there is no provision in law for a municipality to evaluate a finding of the Auditor-General as incorrect after the audit opinion is made public. The time to disagree with the AG is before the management letter is written and

00:40:27not after. The administration, in fact, successfully upgraded to a qualified opinion in those discussions that caused the annual report to serve in council six months late. That was as good as it was going to get. For example, a building was bought in 2014 for the purpose of creating much-needed student accommodation. That building is shuttered, not refurbished,claim

00:40:57not used by students, exposed to hijack, squat, criminality, and the committee was told there is no financial loss to the city. 12 years of loss of rental income was not even a discussion point in the report. This continued hubris is what has caused the Auditor-General to run out of patience and accept no more excuses. MPAC has run out of patience and will now no longer acceptclaim

00:41:28any more excuses. The Democratic Alliance welcomes the changes introduced through Recommendation 3, which recommends that the inputs from the departments be approved and adopted as resolutions of council. This gives each recommendation from the departments proper standing and creates a clearer responsibility for its implementation. The responsible departments must record the resolutions directed to them, implement them, and report on progress, and the relevant Section 79 committees must then follow

00:41:58that progress and hold the executive accountable, especially where deadlines are missed. This frees MPAC to exclusively pursue its own mandate, that of holding those responsible for the incurrence of UIFW, and pursue them, a DA government will certainly will, as Section 32 of the MFMA requires. This council is nearing the end of its term, but the administration's obligation to implement these recommendations

00:42:28continues. Every outstanding MPAC resolution approved in this council in this term must enter the next term with its history, its deadline, responsible department, and implementation status clearly recorded. On the 4th of November, the DA will ask the residents of Johannesburg for a mandate to govern this city under Mayor Helen Zille. A DA-led council will require a full account of every outstanding resolution, not only from MPAC,

00:42:58but from all the Section 79 committees. Officials will account for financial mismanagement, missed deadlines, repeated failure to implement. Consequence management will be implemented. The people of Johannesburg deserve a government that works. They must see the decisions taken in this chamber reflected in reliable water and electricity supply, functioning roads, cleaner communities. In short, municipal services that they can depend on. The DA supports the recommendations

00:43:28contained in this report. I thank you.

00:43:32Thank you, Councillor Suddaby.

FF+ on financial findings

00:43:35AfrikaansRaadslid Boer, Vryheidsfront Plus.

00:43:40AfrikaansGoeiemôre, Vrou Speaker.

00:43:42Fellow councillors, good morning. I will address you mainly on item one on the financial report. And I want to start off with the Auditor-General's finding. And again, as in previous council sittings as well, we want to recommend the Joburg Market and Joburg Theatre for receiving clean audit reports. Well, you're setting an example for the rest of the entities to follow, thank you. What is, however,

00:44:12very much concerning is the qualified report that the core received. And looking at mainly what it is, there's mainly two items there involved. The one is the sundry debtors, although that figure appeared on the last year's financial report as well, so that could not have been the driver. The wasted expenditure there, however, the general expenses of 398 million rand, that should have been in 2023/2024,

00:44:43and it was recorded in the 2024/2025 financial year. That's just absolutely an administrative mistake, administrative inaccuracies that is still not farfetched to believe that the only cause for the delay in the financial statements is because they got a qualified report from the Auditor-General. And this is a real concern, because we have put the city at risk.

00:45:13Our bond trading was suspended by the JSE. Our credit rating agencies have put us on hold for a possible downgrade, so we create an enormous risk for the city because of this. And I think the administration really needs to make sure that we adhere to the AG's findings. There are a lot of repeated findings and that appear every single year. UIFW, yes, the total amount is down fromclaim

00:45:4212 billion to 3.6 billion because council wrote off 18 billion. There's a new unauthorized expenditure amounting to 9.1 billion, which was totally unnecessary if you corrected them in the adjustment budget. The same with irregular expenditure, the current year's figure is 3 billion, at least down from last year's 5.5 billion. Looking at the financial figures, and the financial figures do not lie, they tell us exactamente why is the city in such a desperate financialclaim

00:46:11Afrikaans30 sekondes.claim

00:46:13Ag, Mevrou die Speaker, ek sal moet vinnig maak hier. We have to report a surplus of 1.6 billion. It's up from last year's 234 million. The own funding on Capex is already at 1.5 billion. So all of our surpluses go to funding Capex expenditure, and then we got no money to repair our debt, and that is why the city's financial position is in such a dire situation. I would have liked to be able to... Yeah, the financial figures are concerning and that is why

00:46:45AfrikaansKan u sit, asseblief? U tyd is op.

00:46:48AfrikaansDankie, Mevrou die Speaker.

00:46:50AfrikaansBaie dankie.

DA on Auditor-General findings

00:46:56Councillor K. Wax from the DA, you have three minutes.

00:47:06Thank you, Madam Speaker. Honourable Speaker, councillors and residents. I would like to talk to the Integrated Annual Report for the year ending 30th of June 2025, sorry. Today's Auditor-General's report. This report is not just an accounting document. It is a mirror held up to the soul of the city, and what it reflects is deeply disturbing. The outcomeclaim

00:47:36of the report is an unqualified audit opinion with key findings. The Auditor-General confirms that Joburg's group accounts may appear sound, but the city's own books tell a different story, one of adverse opinions, irregular expenditure, and governance decay. Let us be clear, Madam Speaker, an adverse opinion of this nature is not a technicality. It is a warning, a red flag that the city's financial statements cannot be trusted. Behind those

00:48:06numbers lie broken systems, missing records, and a chaotic leadership culture that has normalized non-compliance. The report, Madam Speaker, exposes weak asset management, where infrastructure worth billions cannot be properly verified. It reveals procurement failures, where contracts are awarded without transparency, and fruitless expenditure, where public money evaporates without consequence. It speaks of performance

00:48:36reports that mislead, audit committees that lack teeth, and senior management instability that has crippled accountability. These are not isolated errors; they are symptoms of a governance system in distress. Colleagues, when the Auditor-General warns of going concern risks, it means Joburg's ability to sustain itself is under threat. This is not opposition rhetoric. It is the sober assessment of

00:49:06the nation's highest audit authority. We cannot continue to treat these findings as routine. Every rand wasted is a street left in darkness, a clinic without medicine,

00:49:2050 seconds left.

00:49:21a community without water. The people of Joburg deserve a city that values integrity over conscience. Madam Speaker, we need what the DA has always called for: a decent forensic review of all irregular and wasteful expenditure, strengthening of internal audit and risk management, and a leadership accountability framework that will serve the city well. So, Madam Speaker, the political administration has failed dismally to lead and govern the city. It is said

00:49:51that you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time. November 4th will be your day of reckoning. I thank you, Madam Speaker.

00:50:01AfrikaansDankie.

EFF supports report

00:50:03Councillor J. Mosehla, Economic Freedom Fighters.

00:50:11Greetings, Speaker. Protocol observed. Firstly, I would like to congratulate the mighty EFF for a successful provincial rally held in Venda, in Limpopo, to celebrate our 13th anniversary, and to present an election manifesto to South Africa and the world. And also to unveil our very own Dr. Mbuyiseni Ndlozi as the face of the City of Johannesburg.claim

00:50:45Please connect to the real State of the Nation Address at 12:00 today, presented to you by the CIC Malema. Madam Speaker, the Economic Freedom Fighters rises in support of the adoption of the Municipal Public Accounts oversight report on the 2024/2025 Integrated Annual Report. We support this report because it presents an honest assessment of the city's performance and reinforcesclaim

00:51:16the constitutional principles of accountability, transparency, and responsive governance. The role of MPAC, Speaker, is not to protect the executive or the administration, but to protect the public resources and to ensure that every cent belonging to the people of Johannesburg is accounted for. The period under review was characterized by significant political and administrative instability. The city experienced frequent changes in Executive Mayors, City Managers, political

00:51:52Councillor Mosehla. Councillor Mosehla, can you take your seat? I see there's a hand. Whose hand is it? Councillor Aphane. Well, I think maybe you can get up again, because Councillor Aphane's hand is up, but he's not standing up to speak. Councillor Mosehla, carry on.

00:52:20For the first time, Johannesburg is governed through a coalition. While these dynamics help explain some of the challenges experienced, they can never be used to justify poor governance, financial mismanagement, and poor service delivery. Honourable Speaker, the Economic Freedom Fighters does not deal in comfortable fictions. We deal with facts. The facts contained in this oversight

00:52:50report and the Auditor-General's findings tell a story of an administration beginning to correct years of institutional weaknesses through a stronger oversight and improved financial management. The consolidated group annual financial statements achieved an unqualified audit opinion, while the core administration received a qualified audit opinion based on two specifically identified matters ofclaim

00:53:20948.4 million in sundry debtors that could not be adequately verified, and 398 million in misallocated general expenditure. Unlike previous years, Speaker, this council received detailed explanations, quantified findings, and remedial plans. The Office of the City Manager and the CFO presented these matters openly before the oversight committee,claim

00:53:5050 seconds, councillor.claim

00:53:52a culture of transparency and accountability. However, Speaker, our support for this report must never be interpreted as an endorsement of complacency. The report still highlights serious weaknesses in procurement, internal controls, consequence management, and compliance with legislation. Approximately 40% of service delivery targets were not achieved.claim

00:54:20Communities across Johannesburg continue to experience unreliable electricity, deteriorating roads, water interruptions, sanitation failures, and decaying municipal infrastructure. The EFF believes that every rand lost through corruption, wastefulclaim

ANC supports report

00:54:38Councillor, your time is up. Councillor, your time is up. Can you be seated? Your time is up. Thank you so much. Thank you, councillor. ANC, Councillor M. Lobi. And can I ask that councillors do not unmute themselves? Councillor Kgeletsane, you were unmuted and we heard all the noise there. Please, can we respect councillors? Councillor M. Lobi, your time is starting.

00:55:15Honourable Speaker, greetings to you and all protocol observed. Eh Speaker, I rise today with a sense of cautious pride in what this administration, under the stewardship of our Executive Mayor, Councillor Dada Morero, the Deputy Executive Mayor, Councillor Loyiso Masuku, the City Manager, Dr. Floyd Brink, and the Group Chief Financial Officer,

00:55:50Mr. Tebogo Moraka, has begun to build for the people of Johannesburg. Not a certain portion of Johannesburg, but the whole of Johannesburg, from north to south, east to west. The service delivery of the City of Johannesburg, Madam Speaker, does not have a colour. It does not serve specific people,

00:56:20unlike other cities where we see apartheid being practiced. For too long, this council has been forced to confront reports that spoke only of decline. Today, for the first time in years, we can point to the consolidated group annual financial statements that received an unqualified audit opinion from the Auditor-General. That is not a small thing, Madam Speaker.claim

00:56:51It means that at the level of the group, where our residents actually experience services through City Power, Johannesburg Water, Pikitup, and our other entities, the numbers can be trusted. Yes, Madam Speaker, the core administration was qualified this year on two specific and identifiable matters: sundry debtors of 948.4 millionclaim

00:57:24and a general expenses cut-off of around 398 million. We do not hide this, Madam Speaker. But unlike in the past, this administration has not responded with excuses. It has responded with an Audit Remediation and Financial Governance Sustainability Program, with named owners, with milestones, and with monthly reporting to this very same council.claim

00:57:58Honourable members, look at what else has changed. Through the joint effort of this committee, led by ChairpersonRaseruthe, and our entity boards, over 23 billion in irregular, fruitless, and wasteful expenditure was regularized in a single year. The disciplinary board appointed under this administration is operationalclaim

00:58:29and is processing cases that for years gathered dust. Some of those cases, our kids were still in high school. Revenue grew by 10% from 73 billion to 81 billion, while the group recorded a 1.2 billion surplus, a turnaround from last year's 277 million deficit. This is what disciplined, professional administration looks like.claim

00:59:01This is what happens when the City Manager and Chief Financial Officer work hand-in-hand with provincial and National Treasury, with the Auditor-General, and oversight structures. Not as adversaries, but as partners in rebuilding trust. Let me say, Madam Speaker, come the 4th of November, the people of Johannesburg will vote for the African National Congress, more than 50%.claim

00:59:33Because they can see the work of the ANC, the love of the African National Congress towards the City of Johannesburg. We do not hate anyone. We love everyone. We deliver services to everyone. We are not yet there, Speaker. 30 billion rand inclaim

01:00:00historic UIFW remains on our books. 40% of our SDBIP targets were not met. These are the honest numbers, and this administration has placed them before us without spin. Honourable Speaker, hope is not naive optimism. Hope is what disciplined leadership earns. Dr. Brink, Mr. Moraka are giving the people of Johannesburg a city that reports honestly, corrects its errors,claim

Point of order on service delivery claim

01:00:34Councillor Lobi, Councillor Lobi, please take your seat. Councillor Alex Christians, are you able to stand up for me?

01:00:46Yeah, Madam Speaker. Thank you very much. This way, our Council, it's much easier for me to stand on a point of order, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, Councillor Lobi is misleading this house. He's just made a statement that they are delivering service to everybody

01:01:03Councillor, Councillor Alex, Councillor Alex, Councillor Alex. Councillor Lobi, continue with your speech.

01:01:14How?

01:01:15I asked for Councillor Lobi to continue with his speech. Thank you, Councillor Alex, you may sit. Councillor Lobi.

01:01:26Thank you, Speaker.

01:01:28isiZuluNgiyathemba uzothula.

01:01:30And this administration, Speaker, holds itself accountable. That is the foundation of a better Johannesburg, a city that works for all who live in it. As the ANC, we support this item and this report, Speaker. And as the ANC, we are saying come the 4th of November, all service delivery in the City of Johannesburg happens without fear or favour. We don't service on specific colour. We service all the people of Johannesburg. I thank you, Speaker.

Deputy Executive Mayor responds

01:02:13Councillor Lobi, thank you. The Deputy Executive Mayor, who's also the MMC, Councillor Loyiso Masuku, can we have you?

01:02:28Good morning, Madam Speaker. Good morning, Executive Mayor. Good morning, Chief Whip of Council, Chair of Chairs, MMCs, City Manager, Group CFO, all colleagues and the Secretary to Council. Thank you very much, Madam Speaker, and we appreciate all the comments on and the work of MPAC that has been very progressive in terms of getting us to where we are on the

01:03:00oversight role. We do want to highlight and say that we appreciate the points made into retaining our unqualified audit opinion at the group level and reflecting some improvements in financial reporting and governance, as well as our ability to show progress on delivery and the work that we've been doing. These achievements, Speaker, at a level, demonstrates

01:03:31the city's continued commitment to improving service delivery, despite the operating challenges that we have at the fiscal element. We do want to commit and recommit ourselves to accelerating the implementation of the audit action plans. Thank you, Councillor Lobi and Councillor Raseruthe for mentioning that. And that audit action plan will address the recurring findings and

01:04:01strengthen internal controls that Councillor Suddaby spoke about earlier. And we are also, through enhanced project management and monitoring and accountability, and of course, strengthening our revenue collection, our billing accuracy. Speaker, I must mention and may just make a correction. Speaker, we lodged our dispute with the Auditor-General before, Speaker.

01:04:31I must correct, through you, what Councillor Suddaby said. That is why, Speaker, we only received the management letter, it was only released after the dispute, because that's the process and the ANC-led Government of Local Unity, the coalition, know that and they understand it, and we work within the confines of the law, together with National Treasury. So, for the record, I wanted to clarify that. Speaker, we want to appreciate MPAC

01:05:00in their role and the independent assessments of the annual report that has been concluded, and of course, appreciate that the committee members worked tirelessly and put up sacrificed some of their time. This is what we do when we work together. Oversight and administration for the good of the city, and yes, we've noted some of the significant weaknesses

01:05:31that they raise. And as the administration, we are not oblivious to that, and we are pleased that they also acknowledge some certain governance and service delivery improvements. We are committed to continue with the good work that we've started doing on consequence management. Speaker, you can see the executive is on full swing, together with the administration in terms of dealing with consequence management. Councillor Lobi also alluded to that in

01:06:00his speech. We are strengthening governance and we will improve in our audit outcomes and we will ensure that corrective actions are implemented and enhance the city's overall institutional performance, Speaker. And we will also fast-track all these disciplinary cases and investigations that we're doing, as well as improve in terms of the reliability and continue to work on the recommendations that come from Section 79 committees and MPAC,

01:06:30because we understand the role of oversight. Thank you, Speaker. We appreciate all of that. We ask Council to note.

Executive Mayor's response

01:06:38Thank you so much, Deputy Mayor, MMC. Executive Mayor, Councillor S. Morero.

01:06:55Is the Executive Mayor still here? Okay. If he's not here, let me see. Okay, he's here.

01:07:13Thank you, Speaker.

01:07:14Can you

01:07:15Not sure if I'm audible.

01:07:17Yes, you are.

01:07:20Thank you, Speaker. We noted the comments from the colleagues, the honorable councillors in the chamber. I don't have further comments, except to appreciate the inputs that came from the colleagues. Thank you.

MPAC chair concludes and acknowledges members

01:07:38Thank you so much, Executive Mayor. Member in charge, Councillor S. Raseruthe, Chair of MPAC.

01:07:49Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, to conclude in accordance with Section 129, Subsection 1 of the MFMA, MPAC recommends that Council approves with reservations the 2024/2025 Annual Report for the City of Johannesburg, noting the observations cited in the body of the report. Speaker, please, within my two minutes,claim

01:08:20can you also allow me to acknowledge the following councillors: Councillor Xulu from ActionSA, Councillor Mashaba, ActionSA, Councillor Modukanene, ActionSA, Councillor Shawe, DA, Councillor Da Gama, DA, Councillor Maake, DA, Councillor Suddaby, DA, Councillor Lefutso, ANC, Councillor Lobi, ANC, Councillor Mofokeng, ANC, Councillor Radebe, ANC, Councillor Mazibuko, ANC, Councillor Masera, Economic Freedom Fighters, Councillor Cherry,

01:08:51PA, Councillor Gwamanda, Al Jama-ah, Councillor Nkonyeni, ActionSA, Councillor Santana, DA, Councillor Sindani, ANC, Councillor Munyayi, ANC, Councillor Nhlapo, Economic Freedom Fighters, Councillor Abdool, UDM, and also allow me to acknowledge our support staff, Speaker. Legal, Peggy, Mbezi, Mabogo, and Msito.

01:09:20Hold on a second. Which councillor's hand is up? Councillor Mathe.

01:09:31Ah, no, no, no.

01:09:33Apologies, there was a mistake with the mic.

01:09:36You can carry on, Chair, carry on.

01:09:38Thank you very much. Thank you,

01:09:42Councillor Masera.

01:09:43Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I was going through our support staff. On legal is Peggy, our research our coordinator is Mbezi, our researcher is Mabogo and Msito. Speaker, I'm acknowledging all these councillors because as MPAC Committee, we have never we have never collapsed our own meeting or

01:10:15failed to sit because of quorum. We even worked during recess. So, I saw it fit, as a father, to acknowledge all of them. Thank you very much, Speaker.

01:10:29Thank you, Chair.

01:10:36Councillor Mathebula, no more. Thank you.

Recommendations agreed

01:10:39Thank you, Chair. You forgot to recognize Councillor Arnolds. Councillors, the recommendations are on pages 1.5 and 2.16 to 2.18. Are these items agreed to?

01:10:59Agreed. Agreed. Thank you.

01:11:15That was the best agreed that I heard in some time. Thank you so much. STC, where are we now?

Announcements, audio problems and adjournment

01:11:22Announcements and closing. Announcements and adjournment.

01:11:28Colleagues, where are we now?

01:11:30Announcements.

01:11:32There are no announcements, except that I want to put my five cents here and say thank you very much to MPAC. Thank you very much to MPAC. MPAC, you have really worked, because the last time

01:11:48You are not audible, Speaker.

01:11:51I'm not I'm on. I want to say thank you for the oversight of

01:11:59Speaker, a re go utlwe.

01:12:02You can't hear me?

01:12:04Still nothing, Speaker.

01:12:07Can you hear me?

01:12:08You are not audible, Speaker.

01:12:11IT.

01:12:13SesothoO timile mic o, Speaker.

01:12:17Speaker, we can't hear you.

01:12:18I was not pressing. Can you hear me now?

01:12:22No, Speaker.

01:12:26I don't know what is happening. Huh?

01:12:28You can't hear you.

01:12:29Okay, just hold on.

01:12:39They are going to be... Can IT run up very quickly? Someone is muting us, and they've gone. It's fine. It's fine, it's fine, they've gone.

01:13:01Someone's playing with the... So, where must I talk? Where can I talk? On whose laptop? Can I talk here? Even when I'm not pressing, it's open, it's showing.

01:13:32Can you hear me? Can you hear me now? Can you hear me now?

01:13:47isiZuluHhayi, niqala umkhuba.

01:14:10I'm talking. It's fine, don't. It's fine, they will go. Someone's busy... Yeah, I've concluded. I think they're finished now.

01:14:37Why must we wait here? We are adjourned, because I can't... They've unmuted me. Can you hear me, Councillors? Can you hear me?

01:15:01Speaker, yes.

01:15:03Colleagues, can you hear me now? Can you hear me, Councillors? The meeting has been adjourned. Thank you so much. The meeting has been adjourned. Thank you so much.

01:15:31Everybody inside the chamber