Chairperson, today, in the debate on the Division of Revenue Bill, I will speak on behalf of my province, the Eastern Cape. I will also talk about matters that have been brought to the attention of the committee and about the division of revenue.
We all know that this is probably the most important Bill passed in the NCOP. The first thing I would like to bring to your attention is that there is a need to develop a clear policy on land disposal as municipalities are more inclined to sell land to private developments than to government. This is affecting the spending of money allocated for housing delivery. The process of accreditation of municipalities must be speeded up. I would like to add that it must be municipalities that have the capacity to deal with this matter.
There is a need for the reconsideration of the local government equitable share formula rather than to base it on the outdated 2001 census. Instead, factors such as the prevalence of poverty and the location level of unemployment and education, among others, must be taken into account. It is proposed that historical backlogs be taken into account so that poor municipalities, especially those from the former homelands, may be assisted to get on par with others. If this is not done, these municipalities will actually never catch up, and they will always be in trouble. It is very important that this is dealt with.
Circumstances specific to each municipality are not taken into account with the Municipal Systems Improvement Grant and the Financial Management Grant allocations. Although the new conditional grants are welcomed, we are of the view that the Overload Control Grant should be brought forward to the 2009-10 financial year, taking into account the infrastructure of our roads.
It is proposed that the Local Government Data Collection Forum referred to on page 71 of the Division of Revenue Act be decentralised to the provinces. Although provinces are welcoming the favourable response from government regarding the Financial and Fiscal Commission submissions, it is proposed that timelines be attached to responses.
In conclusion, I would just like to mention that oversight must be very rigid on the spending of conditional grants. We have had cases in the country and in our provinces where Municipal Infrastructure Grant funds were used to pay salaries of councillors. It is of utmost importance that we are very vigilant as far as the spending of conditional grants is concerned. I thank you. [Applause.]