What ministers are responsible for all local authorities since 1994? The DA stated that the fundamental reason for the collapse of many municipalities across South Africa has been the ANC’s cadre deployment policies and the wholescale mismanagement, corruption and criminalisation of the state that followed. Municipal officials were not appointed for competency, but rather political expediency. Apart from relying on bad government to solve the problems caused by bad government, the DA is most concerned by the constitutional implications of what is being proposed. The document seems to reveal an ANC plan to slowly roll back the powers of democratically elected local and provincial government.
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Communism – #Bolshevism
THE ONE PLAN – The ANC is using Covid-19 pandemic as an opportunity for massive power grab (and do not forget all the corruption, land grabs and crime/murders) and violations of human rights and court cases about levels 3 and 4.
Development of One Plans – Ramaphosa
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6 July 2020
This is nothing short of a coup d’état. The document literally invokes the phrase “Never waste a good crisis” and describes the response of government to the Covid-19 pandemic as “exemplary”, and proposes using the District Development Model and the Command Council system as a means of centralised government policy-making.
This model, it argues, “should inform South Africa’s economic response and it will do so in a way that will disrupt current and old ways of how government has been working”. It will also “bind” all spheres of government.
One of the specific proposals in the document has already been adopted: government ministers will be appointed as “district political champions” to oversee the other spheres of government. This presumably includes ministers like Lindiwe Zulu who can hardly manage her own department.
If the DA’s suspicions are justified it means that the inane-sounding District Development Model was never about improving service delivery; instead it was a cover for the ANC grabbing more government power, and eventually doing away with provincial and local elections.
The ANC is not above using its own failures in order to attack the Constitution. Just like the failure of the government’s land reform programme was used to argue for an amendment of section 25 of the Constitution, so the ANC will have no shame to use the damage done by its own cadres in government to argue for scrapping the nine provinces, and turning municipalities into extensions of the national government.
The stated intention behind the District Development Model has also been at odds with the hands-off response of national government to the collapse of municipalities. If the national government really cared about the communities that suffer the collapse of municipal services, then why has it been so hesitant to use its existing powers of intervention?
Section 139(7) of the Constitution gives the national government considerable power to step into the shoes of useless provinces, and so to stop municipalities from self-destructing. But asked about municipalities defaulting on their Eskom debt, hiring reprobates implicated in the VBS scandal, or entering financially ruinous contracts, Minister Dlamini-Zuma has made a conspicuous display of wringing her hands.
If indeed the ANC’s plan is to govern South Africa by way of Command Councils, then maybe it suites the party simply to let the municipalities under its watch collapse entirely. It could then say “look, the Constitution no longer works”, escape the wrath of voters in places where ANC majorities are thin, all the while securing permanent ANC control.
But this is allowed to happen communities across the country will be prevented from doing in future what the people of the Western Cape have already done: to escape life under corrupt and incompetent ANC leaders, and to buck the downward economic trend of the rest of the country.
The DA will put a formal question to the President asking whether the document has any formal status in government, and whether its contents reflect current or proposed government policy.
We will also be keeping a close look at what further proposals emerge under the guidance of the so-called district model, and we will be requesting a record of decisions and discussions of all the Command Councils that have been established across the country.
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DA exposes ‘top secret’ government document – Cilliers Brink
6 July 2020
AFRIKAANS
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Find attached an English and Afrikaans soundbite by Cilliers Brink MP.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) is in possession of what appears to be a government document that describes the Covid-19 pandemic as an opportunity for the “macro re-organisation of the state”, and proposes to make the Command Council system a model for government beyond the lockdown.
The document discusses the financial ruin in municipalities that it says is due to South Africa’s credit downgrade and the lockdown, and uses this as a gap to extend and consolidate central state control.
The credit downgrade and the lockdown did not result in municipalities collapsing, the ANC did.
The fundamental reason for the collapse of many municipalities across South Africa has been the ANC’s cadre deployment policies and the wholescale mismanagement, corruption and criminalisation of the state that followed. Municipal officials were not appointed for competency, but rather political expediency.
Apart from relying on bad government to solve the problems caused by bad government, the DA is most concerned by the constitutional implications of what is being proposed. The document seems to reveal an ANC plan to slowly roll back the powers of democratically elected local and provincial government.
This is nothing short of a coup d’état. The document literally invokes the phrase “Never waste a good crisis” and describes the response of government to the Covid-19 pandemic as “exemplary”, and proposes using the District Development Model and the Command Council system as a means of centralised government policy-making.
This model, it argues, “should inform South Africa’s economic response and it will do so in a way that will disrupt current and old ways of how government has been working”. It will also “bind” all spheres of government.
One of the specific proposals in the document has already been adopted: government ministers will be appointed as “district political champions” to oversee the other spheres of government. This presumably includes ministers like Lindiwe Zulu who can hardly manage her own department.
If the DA’s suspicions are justified it means that the inane-sounding District Development Model was never about improving service delivery; instead it was a cover for the ANC grabbing more government power, and eventually doing away with provincial and local elections.
The ANC is not above using its own failures in order to attack the Constitution. Just like the failure of the government’s land reform programme was used to argue for an amendment of section 25 of the Constitution, so the ANC will have no shame to use the damage done by its own cadres in government to argue for scrapping the nine provinces, and turning municipalities into extensions of the national government.
The stated intention behind the District Development Model has also been at odds with the hands-off response of national government to the collapse of municipalities. If the national government really cared about the communities that suffer the collapse of municipal services, then why has it been so hesitant to use its existing powers of intervention?
Section 139(7) of the Constitution gives the national government considerable power to step into the shoes of useless provinces, and so to stop municipalities from self-destructing. But asked about municipalities defaulting on their Eskom debt, hiring reprobates implicated in the VBS scandal, or entering financially ruinous contracts, Minister Dlamini-Zuma has made a conspicuous display of wringing her hands.
If indeed the ANC’s plan is to govern South Africa by way of Command Councils, then maybe it suites the party simply to let the municipalities under its watch collapse entirely. It could then say “look, the Constitution no longer works”, escape the wrath of voters in places where ANC majorities are thin, all the while securing permanent ANC control.
But this is allowed to happen communities across the country will be prevented from doing in future what the people of the Western Cape have already done: to escape life under corrupt and incompetent ANC leaders, and to buck the downward economic trend of the rest of the country.
The DA will put a formal question to the President asking whether the document has any formal status in government, and whether its contents reflect current or proposed government policy.
We will also be keeping a close look at what further proposals emerge under the guidance of the so-called district model, and we will be requesting a record of decisions and discussions of all the Command Councils that have been established across the country.
Issued by Cilliers Brink, DA Deputy Shadow Minister of Cooperative Governance & Traditional Affairs, 6 July 2020
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As part of the implementation of the DOM, the development of long term plans, One Plans
has been critical. These long term plans of all 52 districts have become more relevant than
before. They offer an opportunity for government, the private sector, communities, NGOs,
the traditional leader, church leaders, basic a true all of society approach to forge a social
compact that will enjoin all of us on one development agenda within a district.
Click to access SA-Economic-Recovery-Plan-for-Municipalities-in-response-to-Covid-19.pdf
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To cascade the implementation of the Plan to provinces and districts:
• Provinces and provincial departments will develop supporting provincial implementation
plans working with the relevant National Departments and Districts;
• Provincial Coronavirus Command Councils and District Coronavirus Command Councils will integrate the monitoring of the of the implementation of the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan;
• Provincial Economic Clusters working with the Offices of the Premiers will serve as the
technical support for the monitoring of the Plan at provincial level; and/
The Presidential Coordinating Committee will receive monthly reports on the implementation of the Plan.
Click to access south-african-economic-reconstruction-and-recovery-plan.pdf
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City of Tshwane
Click to access Annexure%20E%20CoT%20Economic%20Recovery%20Reponse%20Plan.pdf
SteveTshwete
Click to access Local%20Economic%20Recovery%20Plan%202020.pdf
Request for Proposals: Development of a Bankable Business Plan for a Catalytic Economic Development Project for OR Tambo District Municipality
The Department of Cooperative Governance (DCOG) in partnership with the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) requires the services of an experienced expert/s to develop a bankable business plan for a catalytic project for OR Tambo District Municipality. The expert/s is expected to facilitate the selection and development of a business plan and resource mobilisation plan for a catalytic economic development project. Furthermore, the expert/s is expected to support O.R Tambo District Municipality to implement the resource mobilisation plan. The assignment is part of the,’’ Supporting Local Government in Promoting Regional Economic Planning and Local Economic Development Project (2017-2021)’’, a joint project currently being implemented by DCOG, SALGA and CLGF.
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Since it was established in 1995, CLGF has been active in Southern Africa, working with the ministries responsible for local government, national local government associations and local governments in member countries to implement decentralisation, improve inter-governmental relationships, and build the capacity of local governments to improve governance and service delivery.
https://www.clgf.org.uk/regions/clgf-southern-africa/
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The Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) is an Associated Organisation of the Commonwealth.
CLGF works to promote and strengthen democratic local government across the Commonwealth and to encourage the exchange of best practice – through conferences and events, projects and research. Working with national and local governments to support the development of democratic values and good local governance.
As a Commonwealth organisation, CLGF draws on the influential network of the Commonwealth that provides a solid basis for its programmes and activities. As an associated organisation officially recognised by Commonwealth Heads of Government, CLGF is well-placed to influence policy development and lead on democracy and good governance at local level.
https://thecommonwealth.org/organisation/commonwealth-local-government-forum-clgf
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2016 – Local authority staff, including councillors and officers from both partner authorities, took part in visits to each other; providing support and advice,
and sharing their own experiences of delivering public services. Partnership working was ‘at the heart of the programme’, with more than 80% of projects resulting in formal partnerships between local organisations in the host country. Some councils also started working with new stakeholders, including private sector companies and regional development agencies.
Click to access commonwealth-local-government-forum-good-practice-scheme.pdf
ONAFHANKLIK 