Staff Reporter
Mangaung Metro Municipality has received an unqualified audit report for the 2019/2020 financial period.
The office of the Auditor General released a report on the performance of the municipality last Friday in which it stated that the municipality has improved in terms of the quality financial reports submitted.
The AG was also satisfied with the quality of both the financial and non-financial report of the municipality.
Mangaung was placed under administration by the Free State provincial government in December 2019 in an attempt to help it improve its operations and draw up a financial recovery plan.
The municipality had failed for several years to meet its financial obligations as it struggled to offer basic services and effectively collect revenue.
Local government MEC Thembeni Nxangisa said in a statement, since the intervention of the provincial government, the municipality had developed a recovery plan that saw them paying their outstanding debts on time.
He said this also helped it regain the confidence of creditors and make significant savings by not paying penalties.
“The municipality has since managed to redirect its savings towards development projects that are aimed at making the lives of the community better,” said Nxangisa.
“Since the financial recovery plan, the municipality has managed to redirect their funds towards rehabilitation of roads and to the completion of projects that they had already started,” he added.
Some of these projects include the Fort Hare and Moshoeshoe Roads as well as some streets in the central business district which are being rehabilitated.
The closing of potholes has also been prioritised by the city.
Nxangisa said the signs of improvement in the municipality were important as they pointed towards better financial management.
“The road ahead might still be loaded with uncertainties and challenges, but a journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step,” said the MEC as he pledged to assist the municipality in its endeavour for better management and improved service delivery.