Community activists and residents are increasingly demanding answers over the high salaries of Johannesburg’s municipal entity executives, as the city faces declining services and infrastructure deterioration.
JoburgCan, a local community action network, welcomed scrutiny of executive pay, which in some cases reaches millions of rand annually. An analysis of the City of Johannesburg’s budget data reveals significant salary increases across several municipal entities, even as the city grapples with widening revenue shortfalls. Combined, CEO salaries across the entities total nearly R40 million.
“Both the AG and Treasury have consistently raised alarm bells about spending on salaries not only for entities but for managers across the board,” said Julia Fish from JoburgCan.
Fish added that revenue collection is also lagging behind targets. “We should be collecting around 94 percent. Until recently, it’s been at the 82 percent mark,” she said, highlighting the tension between high executive pay and declining municipal performance.