Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Des van Rooyen says defaulting municipalities are in fact struggling to pay Eskom.
Van Rooyen cited structural issues as one of the reasons municipalities cannot afford to pay back the debt.
He was speaking at a media briefing for the annual Governance and Administration Cluster's programme of action.
We are looking at arrangements that deal with rolling debt.
— Karen Heese, Economist at Municipal IQ
It’s not just what is owed immediately. What we are looking at is a significant backlog of R1.2 billion in the case of two Mpumalanga municipalities.
— Karen Heese, Economist at Municipal IQ
I think what he was also speaking to, were the systemic issues that led to that backlog. In other words an inability to collect revenue and really an institutional issue at play.
— Karen Heese, Economist at Municipal IQ
Listen to the interview below...