The KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) 2020/21 mid-year budget performance, coupled with the 2nd Division of Revenue Bill and the recent ratings agencies downgrade, signal the most challenging fiscal period our province has seen or experienced post-1994.
The mid-year report currently reflects a projected over-expenditure on the equitable share by almost R1.3 billion, conditional grant over-expenditure of R167million and an infrastructure over-spend of more than R1billion.
This against a shortfall in revenue collection of R364 million. Added to this are the serious budget cuts of more than R5billion in the 2nd DoRA bill – to be carried through the MTEF – and which will be dealt with by cutting jobs.
In short, KZN’s mid-year report and the DoRA bill are a recipe for disaster, particularly since the alliance partners are in court around the wage bill. If agreement on remuneration is not reached, the province will be on a hiding to nowhere.
With increased pressure being placed on our national fiscus – brought about by IMF bailouts and loans, a bloated bureaucracy and now the added pressure of a further downgrade – more and more resources will also be required to service debt and interest. This means that less and less will be available for service delivery or for economic stimulus and job creation.
The big question is this – if KZN struggled to maintain or build a sustainable economy during relatively stable times, how will it manage this economic collapse?
It is clear that every single decision made by KZN’s ANC-led government will determine whether our province survives this economic crisis. Certainly, there can be no place for politically-motivated cabinet reshuffles involving key positions such as finance and economic development. Nor can there be any space for a factionalized ANC in our province, with party politics determining strategic directions and decisions.
If ever there was a microcosm of what has become a macro problem in our province, with the ANC’s failure to develop a capable and ethical state, then it must be KZN Ezemvelo Wildlife (EKZNW). This once proud entity has, over the past seven years showed a steady decline in its capacity to deliver on its mandate.
Despite repeated warnings and advice having been tabled within the KZN Legislature, political interference has been allowed to play its role in the demise of what was once the jewel in the crown of our province.
To date, several so-called ANC heavyweights have had go at fixing the problem during their tenures as EDTEA MECs, with no positive result and if anything, Ezemvelo has regressed. A strategic decision was also taken to appoint David Mabunda, who had been able to successfully turn SAN Parks around, yet he never completed his term. It is clear that political interference was the order of the day but nobody bothered to address the matter.
Earlier this year, then EDTEA MEC Dube-Ncube had the wisdom to suspend the board. The board, appointed by former EDTEA MEC and now Premier Sihle Zikalala, was tasked to develop a commercialization strategy. Four years and millions of rands later there is still no plan of any kind.
The question remains is will the board, who were handsomely remunerated, will be held answerable in any way – it is this type of accountability that builds a capable and ethical state.
It can no longer be that certain individuals simply walk away from mistakes when provincial money is involved. At the end of the day, if this ANC-led government cannot take care of the smaller matters, it will never be able to deal with the bigger issues that continue to affect KZN and, in turn the people of our province.
Now is not the time to be fiddling politically while the province is burning financially. Now is the time to focus on building a capable and ethical state.