Speaking at the full council meeting, the newly elected chairperson, Collen Mochotlhi said he is worried about their low share of the budget. He said their budget is close to P60 million and they already have a deficit of P4 million.
“You will agree with me that when we look at our implementation level status, against our budget provision, this target is likely to remain elusive. This is not a good start for a council.
We have asked for funds increase from the ministry so that we are able to run our council effectively. We are now a full council, not a sub-council like before. There are ongoing projects that need to be completed," he said. According to Mochotlhi, some of the pending projects that are still ongoing include a recreational park which has been pending for four years and developments on it stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic when the constituency development funds were diverted to fight the disease.
He said the park was developed through the constituency development funds and now it is time the project continues right to completion. The council leader said some of the projects are storm water drainage, solar street lights, and internal roads which are still at the tendering stage. He, however, said there has been a delay regarding awarding of tenders something he believes should be fast-tracked. Mochotlhi added that the projects may start since the South East District Council (SEDC) has returned all those projects to them.
He continued: “This is because we were under SEDC and it was the one handling the matter. So it was forced to bring back the files to Tlokweng Council for completion and handing over is not easy as many may think.” Mochotlhi indicated that other money for the constituency development funds will be diverted for street lights in the Central, Masetlheng and Old Kgosing wards.
He said they are also expecting P10 million which is supposed to be used for internal roads and the council will decide on which internal roads to pave among wards. On other matters, Mochothi reminded councillors that the government has previously directed local authorities to strengthen income generation and leverage the Public Private Partnership (PPP) and address Revenue Support Grant inefficiencies.
He said the PPP could help council to achieve some of its mandates and also developments in the area. Additionally, he said members should appreciate that they are still challenged in projects and programme implementation due to delays in the tendering process, but urged them to be optimistic despite the impediments they may be experiencing. “We are all aware of difficulties faced by our constituents, and it is essential that we remain steadfast in our commitment to our community, even in the face of adversity and uncertainty,” he lamented.
He urged councillors to trust that with hard work, dedication, and a willingness to collaborate and listen, they will overcome any challenge that comes their way.
