RUSTENBURG HERALD - RUSTENBURG - Despite what many citizens and certainly members of public in our town deem to be a glaring lack of service delivery by municipalities across the province, the draft budget proposals presented by a number of municipalities across South Africa for 2025/26 reveal that residents can expect a significant increase in tariffs - across the board.
The hikes will affect property rates, electricity, water and sanitation services, and refuse removal. Additionally, some municipalities are also aiming to introduce new services that carry additional fees.
Municipal mayors have explained that above-inflation rates imposed by the national energy provider, Eskom, water boards, and salary increases have made these tariff hikes and additions "unavoidable".
However, the proposed tariff increases have not yet been green-lighted, and will have to undergo various consultation processes, including public participation and comment. The draft budgets will go to the National Treasury for comment before they are tabled in the various councils.
Members of the public are therefore encouraged to take a bit of time and have their say on the Dear (Democratically engaged, active and responsible) South Africa website.
Dear South Africa.co.za is a not-for-profit platform that enables the public to co-shape all government policies, amendments and proposals. Since launching in 2018, they’ve run many successful campaigns and have amassed a considerably large network of over 1 million individuals across the country.
It is important to note that they do not run petitions, but legally recognised public participation processes that allow citizens to co-form policy at all levels of governance. In contrast to petitions, (even if they contain thousands of signatures), which are considered as a single submission by government, Dear SA's process ensures that each comment is recognised and counts as an individual submission.
* Have your say: https://bit.ly/3Yv6s6h
