AfriForum today challenged the ANC to do an urgent audit of the qualifications and competency levels of municipal managers and senior officials in ANC controlled municipalities. AfriForum’s challenge comes after the ANC announced that the party would lay criminal charges against J.P. Smith, the Cape Town Metro’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety, for alleged misrepresentation of his qualifications.
According to Johan Kruger, AfriForum’s Head of Community Development, the ANC should first get its own house in order. “The Smith case needs to be investigated and steps should be taken if proved necessary. It should however be more important for the ANC to investigate whether municipal managers and senior officials have adequate qualifications and meet the competency standards to hold the positions in which the ANC appointed them,” says Kruger.
Kruger adds that a recent report by the Independent Committee of Investigation into the state of municipalities in Gauteng showed that as many as 28% of senior officials in Gauteng do not meet the competency standards for the positions they were appointed for. “The ANC needs to scrutinise itself and audit the qualifications of ANC municipal managers throughout the country with the same vigour. The ANC has a dismal track record when it comes to action against officials who are not duly qualified for positions. Dr Pallo Jordan and Hlaudi Motsoeneng’s misrepresentation of their qualifications – without any consequences – are two recent examples of this,” says Kruger.
According to Kruger, the high percentage of officials who – according to the report – do not meet the competency standards, is a crying shame. “The lack of critical capabilities and competency in municipalities is one of the primary causes of municipal deterioration and dismal service delivery. Taxpayers have had enough of cheap politics and cadre deployment to the detriment of communities’ right to service delivery,” adds Kruger.