WATCH: DA helps ANC dodge Ekurhuleni budget disaster in last-minute R71bn deal

Johnathan Paoli

The DA helped the ANC-led Ekurhuleni administration avert a budget crisis on Tuesday, backing the metro’s R71 billion spending plan after months of political deadlock and days before the city risked provincial intervention.

The special council sitting marked the fifth attempt to pass the budget after four previous efforts failed, with executive mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza warning ahead of the vote that the municipality could not enter the new financial year without an adopted budget.

“This goes a long way really to ensure that there’s continued service delivery to our people, that is not just a service delivery, but it is impactful to our people. So, we want to report that out of the council, 16 political parties that are represented, we consulted widely and 15 political parties actually agreed that this budget is responsive,” Xhakaza said.