“We have since now taken those three municipalities and given those bank statements to the FIC,” he adds. 

ALSO READ: Free State municipalities fail to trace taxpayers' money

Duda says unique identifiers were not used in their bank statements, and this means that there is an increased risk of exposure to undetected fraudulent activities and misappropriation of funds for service delivery.

These municipalities are among many in the province that are failing to provide essential services to residents, who are at most frustrated and angry with them for such failures. Irregular spending has since grown, with almost R2 billion at municipalities across the province and the 2019/20 financial statements of Maluti-A-Phofung still outstanding.

Ten municipalities across the country, including some in the Free State, were spot-checked or sampled in order to properly process, among others, irregular expenditure.

ALSO READ: Free State municipalities fail to trace taxpayers' money

She says these cash-strapped municipalities include Maluti-A-Phofung, Masilonyana, and Tokologo Local Municipalities.  

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