TO: Targeted Media
ATTENTION: News Editors & Journalists
ISSUED: Thursday, 3 February 2022
MEDIA RELEASE: Acting Municipal Manager Business Debt Collection Drive
Prior the advent of Covid-19, the historic debt i.e., funds owed to the municipality was a major and growing concern as it not only affected our balance sheet, public perceptions of our stability as an administration but also the levels at which basic utility services such as water, electricity and other can be efficiently provided.
The pandemic however has further adversely affected economies across the globe with major industry collapses, job losses and reduced working hours affecting incomes, cutting and re-prioritization of budgets becoming the order of the day. Government including municipalities who are at the core of service delivery were also not immune to these effects, experiencing an increase in non-payment of services impacting on historic and new debt, general revenue losses and other operational challenges e.g. billing, municipal resources, etc.
To ease pressure on the already strained national fiscus and in implementing the municipality’s Financial Turnaround Strategy, led by Acting Municipal Manager Dorothy Diale, Mogale City Local Municipality is embarking on a strategic and forward-moving debt collection drive among businesses that owe the municipality millions of rands.
Commencing on 1 February, Diale and a team of relevantly selected municipal officials will commence a series of set meetings with top 20 businesses owing the municipality. “The objective of this progressive approach is to professionally engage these business debtors that add value to the local Mogale City economy, understand their challenges and discuss a workable approach to ensure that debt is paid, and quality services are provided in turn by the municipality”, said Diale.
This phased approach starting with businesses who are the major consumers of our services will see a long-term plan of collecting debt across various municipal services user groups. Whilst the municipality is setting out to collect revenue to overcome challenges of expenditure exceeding income and a growing overdraft, Mogale will also embark on some extensive groundwork that will see an improvement in delivering quality, timeous consumer and customer services as we strive to build a revived Mogale City administration and economy.
Issued by:
Ms. Dorothy Diale
Acting Municipal Manager: Mogale City Local Municipality
Campaign: Business is business – play and pay your part
#ReviveMogale