About 260 desperate employees of the cash-strapped Nongoma Local Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal started their festive season on a sad note after their December salaries were not paid on time.
The struggling municipality also failed to pay its legion of councillors.
Both the employees and the councillors were supposed to get their salaries on Friday, 20 December, but were left high and dry.
The delay forced the council to hold a special sitting and later the workforce was told that their salaries will be received on 24 December 2024.
“We regret to inform you that the salary payment scheduled for today, as per the Council resolution and Circular 06 of 2024, has been delayed. The new payment date is now 24th December 2024.
“We apologise for the inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding in this matter,” the municipality said in an internal memo to employees signed off by Mayor Clifford Mshangane Ndabandaba.
No reason was given for the delay.
However, it is public knowledge that the municipality does not have a municipal manager and chief financial officer. This was after the Pietermaritzburg High Court set aside the appointment of Prince Nhlakanipho Zulu and Mzwandile Dube respectively on the basis that they are ill-qualified for the positions.
Meanwhile, the municipality is facing another crisis after the provincial Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) flagged the appointment of Fezile Ntshangase as the director for corporate services, one of the key positions in municipalities.
In a letter dated 14 December 2024 addressed to the council, which ratified the appointment, the CoGTA MEC Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi said based on the incomplete documents, Ntshangase is not qualified for the job.
He instructed the municipality to remedy the fatal error within seven days and notify the department as stipulated in the municipal systems act.
Ndabandaba did not respond when he was asked whether they had addressed the issue of the appointment of Ntshangase.
