13 Nov 2022

Jwaneng residents have been urged to pay the council what is due to it such as service levies. 

This, according to the township mayor, Ms Olga Ditsie, would  enable the council to be financially self-sufficient and therefore continue offering vital services without hindrance.

Speaking at the launch of an initiative termed Mabogo Dinku, which aims to encourage residents to pay their dues in Jwaneng on Thursday, Ms Ditsie said the town council was struggling with providing basic services such as domestic waste collection and maintenance of roads.

Ms Ditsie said after introspection, a decision was taken to follow defaulters on service levies, rates and property rates. 

She said if paid up arrears could assist the council to gain financial stability.

“At the moment, the council is owed P10 million in rates, P1.3 million in building material loans, P1.1 million in property levies such as car washes and market stalls and over P900 000 in various service levies,” she said.

She said the Mabogo Dinku initiative was a call on residents to come forth and pay the council what was due, adding that failure to pay would attract interest. 

She said a team of council employees would soon go door-to-door to establish tenancy and ownership of residential properties hence pleading for cooperation.

The town mayor said the council had been relying on the mother ministry through the annual budget allotment, but due to priorities on human lives, government was forced to re-direct most funds towards COVID-19 vaccines.  

“The circumstances now dictate that we start looking at channels of complementing the small budget,” she said.

Ms Ditsie said although the council understood that the past two years had been a challenge for individuals, it did not mean that they should default on their responsibilities.

“We know that the past two years have been a financial challenge to individuals due to COVID-19. 

That is why the council has made an arrangement that people come forth with their own payment plans,” she said.

Chief education secretary, Mr Richmond Mahehe said in executing their duties of collecting arrears, it was vital to make it clear to the public the importance of paying up so that they could be willing to come forth. 

He said the team would start going door-to-door on November 14.

For his part, Jwaneng Town Council deputy mayor, Mr Koolopile Pema said that it was the responsibility of the council to ensure that people were given services they needed, and therefore, it should also be the responsibility of residents to ensure that they pay the council what was due to it. 

“It is a reciprocal relationship.ENDS