MEC Gadija Brown will table this budget at the Free State Legislature sitting in the Fourth Raadsaal in Bloemfontein.

Also read:#FSbudget: Municipalities besieged by fiscal challenges

She is set to outline the failures, challenges and successes of provincial departments and municipalities, which at most are found wanting when it comes to adhering to legislation governing their very existence. She is also expected to relate the overview of the financial governance and accounting services in the province, which her department is mostly responsible for. 

Following the national government’s convergence in the province to assess and inspect the running of departments and municipalities, it’s to be seen if Brown will follow suit and address the troubling issues of Local Government and Provincial Public Entities, amongst others.

Also read - #FSbudget: Municipalities besieged by fiscal challenges

Last month, Brown tabled the Free State's provincial budget for 2022/23 at the Gariep Dam in the Kopanong Local Municipality. She announced that her department will partner with the Department of Cooperative Governance (Cogta), among others, to ensure that there is effective governance - a key driver for change across municipalities.

Also read: #FSbudget: Municipalities a huge concern

MEC Brown said they want to get the basics right and improve service delivery whilst water provision in municipalities is also stabilised.

"The Provincial Treasury, in partnership with Cogta and the South African Local Government Association (Salga) has commenced with Integrated Councillor Portfolio training from 8 to 30 March 2022, on the back of the Integrated Councillor Induction Programme (ICIP) in February 2022 to the newly elected councillors in order to provide them with 'knowledge'," she added.

She has announced that these councillors, who have often been accused of ignoring calls and complaints from irate residents, will be trained with regard to oversight leadership, in respect of key portfolio committees, legislation that is applicable to local government, and municipal budget processes.

However, in her address today, MEC Brown could detail how provincial departments have been contravening the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) together with municipalities that are trampling on the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA). Her address comes after President Cyril Ramaphosa held a Presidential Imbizo in Mangaung with residents given a chance to air their views about challenges besieging them daily.

Ailing municipalities, such as the Trompsburg-based Kopanong, Bloemfontein-based Mangaung, and Welkom-based Matjhabeng, amongst others, were revealed as municipalities that have been failing their residents over service delivery. 

National departments like Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) and Water and Sanitation, however, announced their plans to take swift action against these municipalities.

Also read: #BreakingNews: Mangaung stripped of its powers by National Government

Minister of Cogta, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, this weekend confirmed that the Cabinet approved placing the Metro under National Government's control in terms of Section 139 (7) of the Constitution.

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