That means the municipality could be in violation of the Municipal Systems Act, which states that excess staff should not surpass 21.
FILE: Samwu-affiliated workers gather outside the Ugu District Municipality offices demanding that the mayor addresses them on 30 January 2020. Picture: Nkosikhona Duma/EWN
DURBAN – A report commissioned by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Cooperative Governance (Cogta) into the Ugu District Municipality said it had 300 more employees than it needed.
That means the municipality could be in violation of the Municipal Systems Act, which states that excess staff should not surpass 21.
Investigators recommended criminal investigations and for salaries paid to excess staff to be classified as irregular and wasteful expenditure.
The report, seen by Eyewitness News, found damning allegations of tender fraud, maladministration, as well as irregular and wasteful expenditure amounting over R45 million in Ugu.
Disciplinary proceedings were recommended for senior officials including municipal manager Dhanpalan Naidoo and supply chain manager Ntokozo Mkhize.
The report recommended that a case of fraud be opened with the police to probe the appointment of Paul Watson who earns over R55,000 monthly as the municipal manager for water services, despite not being in possession of a matric certificate.
The report also recommended that the police should probe the payment of R1.6 million to 16 ghost employees between July and November 2019.
KZN Cogta asked the municipal council to come up with a plan of action this month.
