Durban: KwaZulu-Natal Finance MEC Francois Rodgers has raised serious concerns over the poor audit outcomes in several municipalities, following a 2024-2025 Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) audit outcomes briefing presented to the Provincial Legislature by Auditor-General Tsakane Maluleke.
According to South African Government News Agency, the Auditor-General highlighted ongoing weaknesses in compliance with the Municipal Finance Management Act, identifying this as a primary cause of persistent audit failures. These include poor financial discipline, weak governance structures, and inadequate consequence management, factors that directly undermine service delivery and erode public trust in local government.
Rodgers condemned the disregard for financial legislation by some municipalities and their leadership. He emphasized that the MFMA is not optional but a legal and ethical obligation. Poor compliance with the Act leads directly to poor audit outcomes, financial instability, and ultimately the inability of municipalities to deliver basic services to the people. This culture of non-compliance must end, he asserted.
At the same time, the MEC acknowledged municipalities that continue to demonstrate discipline and commitment to good governance, noting that improvement is achievable where leadership takes responsibility seriously. He commended municipalities such as Richmond Local Municipality for their openness to working closely with KZN Treasury, adherence to the MFMA, strong internal controls, and ethical leadership, which have resulted in improved audit outcomes.
KwaZulu-Natal Treasury reiterated its alignment with the Auditor-General's consistent view that political leadership plays a central role in improving local government performance, and that councils, mayors, and municipal managers must account fully for how public funds are managed. With local government elections approaching, Rodgers called for heightened accountability among political office-bearers, emphasizing that politicians must be reminded they are custodians of public resources, not owners of them.
Echoing the Auditor-General's call for a strengthened accountability ecosystem, Rodgers stressed that accountability is not the responsibility of government alone. He urged citizens to actively exercise their democratic rights, demand accountability, ask how their money is spent, and hold elected representatives to account for poor governance and maladministration.
KwaZulu-Natal Treasury reaffirmed its commitment to supporting municipalities through technical assistance, capacity building, and oversight, while insisting on firm consequences for persistent non-compliance with financial legislation. Rodgers concluded by stating that there can be no sustainable service delivery without accountability, and clean audits are about restoring integrity in local government and improving the lived realities of the people.