Durban – Despite a frantic effort by the DA to block a bid by the eThekwini municipality to go ahead with taking out a loan of R1 billion from local lenders, the ANC was eventually able to get its way.
That happened on Tuesday during the sitting of the full council that took place at the Durban ICC.
The issue of the R1bn loan for capital expenditure was taken to the council for final approval before officials went ahead with the application.
UPDATE: It's chaos at the ongoing sitting of the eThekwini municipality council at the Durban ICC. Speaker Thabani Nyawose is trying to reign in unruly councillors before they vote on whether the city should go ahead and borrow R1 billion for capital expenditure. @DailyNewsSA
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The money will be part of the R54.6 billion budget for the 2022/2023 budget which will kick in from July 1 this year.
Late on Tuesday, the request for approval was brought by the acting city manager, Musa Mbhele.
The municipality's debt book stands at R17bn with the last borrowing being in 2019 where R500 million was borrowed to finance projects like Warwick Junction, the Point Waterfront, the Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network-C3 Corridor and the Cornubia Integrated Development.
Before the matter was put to a vote, the leader of the DA caucus in the council, Nicole Graham, had raised objections, saying the continual borrowing by the municipality was suffocating ratepayers since they are the ones who ended up picking the tab.
When it came up again, Graham said they were against and the stalemate forced speaker Thabani Nyawose to put the matter to a vote.
“No speaker, we are against it,” Graham said in her objection.
The voting process was a rowdy one as some councillors kept on moving in and out of the venue (that is not done during voting) and it had to be done twice to ensure that the process was without flaws. In the end, the DA was defeated.
Most notable during the voting process for the loan was that the IFP (Inkatha Freedom Party) with its 15 votes out of 207, abstained while the ABC (Abantu Batho Congress) of Philani PG Mavundla who is a coalition partner of the ANC in the municipality and also the deputy mayor, gave it the green light.
Parties that objected to the already heavily indebted coastal municipality taking more loans included ACDP (African Christian Democratic Party) and the Freedom Front Plus.
“Thanks councillors, those who are in support are 130 (votes), those are against are 62, those who are abstaining are 15, therefore the item is being supported (the loan is approved),” Nyawose said when declaring that the motion had passed and the DA was defeated.
Daily News