The Parliamentary COMMITTEE responsible for the operation of public money is satisfied with the sentence received by the officials of the Durban Municipality who were convicted of consuming alcohol with the council’s money.
The members of the committee said that they believe that the three officials who were convicted of embezzling thousands of rands of municipal funds should have been dismissed from their jobs.
Officials in the leadership of the council appeared before the committee on Wednesday night.
The Auditor’s report revealed that council officials indulged in R31 000 worth of alcohol during a workshop.
One person involved in this incident was suspended from work for 10 days.
Two were given a warning and others were found innocent.
A member of the committee, Mr. Kwenzokuhle Madlala, said that this sentence is very small when compared to the crime committed by the officers.
“This is wasted money. In your opinion, do you see that this sentence is enough if you compare it to the crime they committed?”
The director of the human resources department in the municipality, Mr. Sihle Mkhize, said that their hands are tied in that matter.
Mkhize said that they cannot oppose the decision of the committee that supervised the discipline of these workers.
“We cannot interfere in the chairman’s decision. Once the chairman has made a decision, we must do what he has said.”
Mkhize said that those who were found not guilty were found to be not present at the event.
“When the presentations were made, it turned out that the other person was not even present at the event. That’s why he was found not guilty.”
Madlala, who has worked for the Durban Municipality, said it is not true that the municipality cannot oppose the chairman’s decision.
“Khabazela is the one who taught me the rules of the council. It is not true that the municipality cannot oppose the decision of the committee. If you are not satisfied with the decision of the chairman, you should challenge it. I believe that the municipality should have challenged the decision and investigated the behavior of the chairman of the committee. What made him give them such a small sentence when they committed such a crime?”
Madlala said he did not agree with the sentence given to the workers.
“Personally, I believe that those involved should not be fired.”
The committee said it will personally come to Durban to investigate other complaints about the management of the council.
When this issue was still a topic of discussion in 2024, the name of Dr. Simphiwe Ndlovu, the head of parks and recreation, was said to be being cheated by the municipality of the money that was taken. It was alleged that when Ndlovu’s office released information about the things that had been paid for the event to the financial department, some slips were withheld. Ndlovu’s friends at that time told him that he was not there on the night of drinking and that he does not drink alcohol.
It was also said that other drinks other than alcohol were also paid for in the amount that was counted.