[imagesource:gencraftai]

A cash-strapped municipality in Limpopo erroneously gave its councillors and officials a double salary Christmas bonus in December.

Now the Mopani district municipality wants the money back, and they’re giving the unlucky culprits till the end of the month to pay back their excesses.

Only in South Africa.

The irregular payments totalled R4.5 million, per The Citizen, while they have only received R696,459.91 back from some councillors, officials and EPWP beneficiaries, according to municipal manager Tshepo Mogano.

He said the payments total was R4 531 840.19, of which R1,917,398.66 was paid to Extended Public Work Programme (EPWP) beneficiaries, who accounted for 42% of the overpayment, councillors were paid R665,840.61 while the remainder was paid to senior managers and other officials, including deputy managers.

At a council meeting at the municipal chamber in Giyani on Monday, this salary saga topped the agenda, with opposition parties grilling management and demanding answers.

An employee who received a double salary payment said “It was like manna from heaven… 51 of us [councillors] and 210 of our employees received double salary payments on December 20.”

He said some people spent the money on “groceries, expensive booze at nightclubs, Christmas gifts for our families and tailored clothes. Others had a great lifetime experience at the Kruger Park and a trip to top-notch seasides in Durban and Cape Town”.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the councillor said: “We were told to return the money this January. I have already paid back the money, but I cannot say the same about my comrades.”

Yikes.

Naturally, the municipality is adamant that this was just a mistake, but the opposition parties in the council demand that consequence management be applied as soon as possible.

Cope Council caucus leader Manjaro Senyolo went on to suggest that payment errors are becoming a daily occurrence in Mopani.

He said in the past three years, “millions were overpaid to service providers and councillors”, ironically, always during the festive season. He added that some councillors have already “joined their ancestors while some service providers continue to get lucrative tenders from the municipality while still owing”.

“I suspect there’s more to it than meets the eye” Senyolo said, suggesting this matter be elevated to the Hawks.

[source:citizen]