KwaZulu-Natal Public Works and Infrastructure MEC, Martin Meyer, flanked by officials during a recent meeting. Picture: Facebook
Taxpayers will fork out R227,700 less for this year's budget vote speech in KwaZulu-Natal.
For the delivering of the 2024/25 budget speech, the province’s Public Works and Infrastructure MEC, Martin Meyer, has slashed the budget from over R228,000 to just R300.
Meyer said this time around, his office will not be spending money on ‘nice-to-haves’ at the event.
Meyer said the 2024/25 budget vote, the budget speech will not be printed on a glossy booklet, with the MEC’s face on it, saving the department over R70,000. “The budget speech will be printed in-house on regular paper. No new pull-up banners will be procured for the upcoming budget speech.
“No gifts or goody bags for Members of the Provincial Legislature (MPLs) will be procured by the department and other guests at the budget debate,” he said.
He added that the cost containment measures have prompted the department to theme this year as the year of ‘Making the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure to Work for the People of KwaZulu-Natal through Innovation and Collaboration’.
Meyer’s maiden budget speech, set to take place on Thursday at the KZN Legislature based in Pietermaritzburg, will focus on cost containment measures, tackling fruitless and wasteful expenditure, aggressive strategies to combat the construction mafia, plans to sell unutilised government buildings and unveil the department’s artisan programme.
Meyer last month said owing to cost cutting measures, this year’s budget speech will be characterised by the department’s aspiration to curb unwarranted spending.
“The department will no longer be spending money on unnecessary niceties or superfluous perks that do not benefit the people of KZN.
“The implementation of these stringent financial measures is intended at redirecting monies towards accelerating service delivery and spending on the department’s core functions,” he said.
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