Nelson Mandela Bay’s political leadership is trying to mend relations with the National Treasury after mayoral committee member Andile Lungisa accused it of interfering in the city’s administration.
At a portfolio committee meeting on Monday, budget and treasury portfolio head Mkhuseli Mtsila assured the committee the business plan, which was used to get a R750m loan, would not be amended without their knowledge.
In December, a plan was presented to the council to divert hundreds of millions of rands in loan funding meant for infrastructure to settling legal bills and summer festivities.
The document was, however, never officially tabled.
In a letter to acting city manager Peter Neilson, the Treasury cautioned the municipality against spending loan funding on anything other than capital projects.
Lungisa likened this to interference, saying there was a “rogue unit” operating within the Treasury.
The municipality is, meanwhile, also trying to get the Treasury to pay its R330m second tranche of the equitable share, which has been withheld because it does not have a municipal standard chart of accounts system in place.
Mtsila said the document circulated at the December 4 meeting made the committee appear incompetent.
“We are going to mend our relationship with National Treasury,” Mtsila said.
“There has been a lot of negative publicity, but efforts have been made.
“What happened at the previous council meeting, where a report that we don’t know where it comes from is circulated, will never happen again.
“We won’t have a situation where we look incompetent.”
DA councillor Retief Odendaal said the breakdown in the relationship between the city and Treasury was a result of councillors who were not on the committee getting involved.