This is according to the Deputy President, David Mabuza, during a question and answer session at the plenary session in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on Wednesday 11 September 2019. 

Mabuza says both the Provincial and National Department of Cooperative Governance are doing their utmost best to assist these municipalities, which include Masilonyane, Mafube, and Maluti-A-Phofung, amongst others, that are still in debt of millions of rands owed to Eskom. 

Mabuza was responding to the supplemental question in the NCOP and further says these municipalities have been flagged and the national government is currently working on a programme to change their plight.

OFM News previously reported that the financial state of the Mangaung, Setsoto and Mantsopa Municipalities in the province will soon be laid bare when a delegation from the NCOP visits the province next week. 

The visit to the cash-strapped municipalities will come amidst mounting concerns over water supply by the Mangaung Metro. The much-anticipated first council sitting at Maluti-A-Phofung post the 2019 by-elections where the ANC in the province lost ten seats to independent candidates, is expected to take place on Thursday. 

This, after ANC councillors last week boycotted the sitting that was expected to see the election of the new Mayor, Speaker, and Chief Whip. The meeting that was scheduled for 5 September failed to take place as the council could not form a quorum due to the majority of ANC councillors who failed to pitch.

OFM News