Mzimkhulu Thebolla Msunduzi Municipality Mayor Mzimkhulu Thebolla. File Picture
Durban: About R160 million will be invested in water infrastructure by the Msunduzi Municipality to ensure that its residents have access to water in the coming years.
Mayor Mzimkhulu Thebolla made the commitment as he briefed the community on the city’s draft budget for the 2023 financial year, as well as the priorities of that budget on Friday.
Areas including Vulindlela have experienced severe water shortages over the past few years. Thebolla said in the coming financial year, the municipality would receive about R245m in Municipal Infrastructure Grant ( MiG) relief. “We said the supply of water is critical, and that is why water will take 60% of that amount. That is a little over a R160m which will be dedicated to ensuring that people get water.
“The second priority will be roads ‒ R38m of this budget will go towards roads ‒ and then we will embark on other infrastructure projects, but the priority is to ensure that we give out community water because that is a right,” said Thebolla.
He spoke of other service delivery commitments the municipality would undertake in the coming financial year.
“In all the wards, in matters of maintenance there will be R2m per ward ‒ R1m will be for access roads to ensure people can go to their home and another million will go towards infrastructure.
“Our budget for this year is R8.1 billion. In that amount, the capital budget is R637m; this budget is important because it is through this budget that we will meet all the infrastructure demands,” said Thebolla.
Thebolla also took aim at councillors that he accused of not caring about their community, warning that the municipality might be forced to intervene against these councillors on behalf of the community.
“There as wards (where some of the projects will take place) I do not know what we should do about these wards; maybe we should consider what must be done about these wards because the councillors that are supposed to represent the members of the public there, do not care about their communities,” said Thebolla.