adminMarvelous Moyo Gwanda Correspondent
THE government said it will not approve local authorities’ 2015 budgets that do not conform to guidelines stipulating that expenditure on salaries should not exceed 30 percent of revenue collected. Speaking in a meeting with heads of departments of local authorities in Matabeleland South Province in Gwanda Town recently, the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing permanent secretary Engineer George Mlilo said government would be strict on local authorities failing to comply with the set guidelines.
He said plans were underway to align local authorities’ salaries to government salaries in an effort to ensure improved service delivery.
“The major problem we have is that local authorities continue to submit budgets that do not comply with the government directive regarding percentages for salaries and service delivery which should be 30 and 70 percent respectively. This 30/70 percent issue ought to be achieved and there is no question about it. In this region, no local authority is allowed to spend because the budgets have not been approved except for Insiza RDC,” he said.
Eng Mlilo said budgets for Bulilima, Mangwe, Matobo, Gwanda, Umzingwane and Beitbridge were being analysed while budgets for the three urban local authorities in the province — Gwanda, Beitbridge and Plumtree were also yet to be approved.
He added: “Budgets for almost 70 percent of rural councils in other areas have been approved so what is happening here, Honourable Minister ( referring to Provincial Affairs Minister Cde Abedinico Ncube)?”
Eng Mlilo said over the years, residents were shortchanged by councils that spent the bulk of the revenue on salaries.
He said one local authority which he did not name had a total revenue of $900,000 yet its salary bill was $1,4 million.
“In Botswana, South Africa, Zambia and Namibia, local authorities salaries are aligned to government salaries and this is what we want to see obtaining in this country,” said Eng Mlilo.
Last year the government directed municipalities to implement a salary-service delivery ration of 30:70 but most local authorities are yet to comply with the directive.
Gwanda Municipality indicated earlier this year that it was the only local authority that had complied with the salary directive and had cut the town clerk’s salary from $18,000 to $3,000 a month.
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