HEADLINES:
R/€ 
R/£ Huge wages concern
June 10, 2003 Edition -1
Thabo Thulo
While concern was being expressed at a provincial cabinet meeting in Ulundi last week about the huge salaries of municipal managers, the Abaqulusi municipality in Vryheid was approving a budget for enlarging the office of its municipal manager and allocating an extra R1.1 million to it.
It has also emerged that after the passing of the budget, municipal manager Bamba Ndwandwe, who earns R500 000 a year, received a bonus of R72 000 - and he is due for another one in September.
ANC councillor Charles Hugh slammed the R1.1 million allocated to Ndwandwe's office, saying that the manager already earned enough money and his department was not a service delivery one in nature.
Hugh also complained that the municipality, in passing its latest budget, had increased expenditure for personnel by R5.7 million to reach R42.46 million, and that it had passed on an 11% rates and services increase to residents.
The IFP mayoress of the municipality, Elsa Moolman, said the R1.1 million allocated to the municipal manager's office was for salaries.
She said the money was earmarked partly for a new post created in the municipal manager's office.
"The post is called manager in the municipal manager's office, but it has not yet been filled," said Moolman.
Performance
About the huge personnel bill, Moolman said: "The ANC councillor does not understand how a budget works. Everyone in local government has received an 11% increase in salaries.
"And while the 11% increase might seem small, it can shoot up to 14% because benefits such as housing subsidies, medical aids contribution and pension also increases," said Moolman.
Democratic Alliance councillor Willem Burger, said that the employment conditions of the municipal manager also left much to be desired because one of the conditions in his contract was a performance agreement which was to be reviewed yearly.
"But the original one has not yet been drawn up, let alone been reviewed," said Burger, who added that the municipal manager had joined the municipality in 2001.
He said it was not clear how the bonus of R72 000 for Ndwandwe had been arrived at, as it was supposed to be based on performance agreement.
Burger said that about two weeks ago Ndwandwe had failed to discipline a senior official because a lawyer for the official had pointed out that Ndwandwe had no authority to charge his client as Ndwandwe was not properly employed.
Moolman confirmed that Ndwandwe's performance contract had not been signed, but said it would be signed this month.
She denied that the council had lost the disciplinary hearing because of Ndwandwe's failure to sign his performance agreement and said it was because the matter had expired in terms of the law.
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