This follows a meeting between the MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Thembeni Ngxangisa, municipal managers and Chief Financial Officers (CFOs). The departmental spokesperson, Zolile Lobe, says these municipalities include Ngwathe, Tokologo, Letsemeng and Mohokare. 

He says amongst the issues that were raised in the meeting was how to improve communication between the municipalities and the provincial departments. Lobe says the meeting also encouraged Salgato adopt and incubate these four municipalities to help them improve their financial performance following damning Auditor-General (AG) reports on the state of municipalities in the province.

Lobe says all municipalities pledged to improve their audit performances and this will be used as a Performance Contract between them and the department of Cogta. This happened during a meeting held in the Matjhabeng Local Municipality, which includes Welkom. He adds that the of the 23 municipalities in the Free State, 19 have committed to receive unqualified audit reports in the financial year 2018/19.

"The meeting was also attended by the MEC for Treasury in the Free State, Gadija Brown, and the Officials from National Treasury, Salga in the Free State and the Office of the Auditor-General,” he says. Lobe further adds that the Office of the AG highlighted areas where municipalities can improve and also committed to assisting them where and how to improve their audit performances.

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