eThekwini Municipality's R20m spending for Metro FM awards sparks outcry from parties, ratepayers group

Ratepayers and opposition party councillors in the eThekwini Municipality have expressed outrage over the City's decision to spend R20 million on hosting the Metro FM Awards.

The concerns about the sponsorship resurfaced last week following a discussion on the issue in the municipal Economic Development Portfolio Committee. Documents show that the City entered into a three-year partnership with the organisers, revealing that there is a required financial partnership investment of R20 million per year.

ACDP councillor Jameel Essop questioned the reasoning behind spending R20m on an awards show.

“At a time when residents are burdened with collapsing infrastructure, water shortages, sewer spillages, electricity instability, and inaccurate billing, the ACDP views this proposed expenditure as a misuse of ratepayers’ money and a clear misalignment of municipal priorities.”

He said while the ACDP supports tourism and economic stimulation initiatives, they must question the strategic consistency and fairness in the allocation of funding toward events. Essop also pointed out that other major events such as the Comrades Marathon and the Gas Motorshow, which demonstrably attract significant visitors and revenue into the city, receive comparatively limited support.

“There is a serious governance misalignment when R20 million can be allocated to a single awards event, yet transformative grassroots sporting initiatives receive very little,” said the ACDP eThekwini Caucus Leader.

DA councillor Heinz De Boer said he understood that some of the funds (R5 million) had come from the Parks and Recreation and Culture (PRC) unit, which is critically underfunded.

“There are massive backlogs in terms of service delivery, grass cutting, and a shortage of equipment. While we understand that PRC also has a function to promote tourism, we believe that to take that large amount to put it into what will be a very exclusive and limited awards ceremony is not justified.”

He said ordinary Durban residents do not derive any benefit from the awards being hosted in the city. “We understand there is a greater economic spin-off from these events, but we must understand that Metro FM is a business; they have the power to leverage other sponsorships. It’s scandalous that the ratepayers' money is used in this way to fund lavish events,” he said.

eThekwini Ratepayers and Residents Association president Ish Prahladh stated that this is an unnecessary expenditure that can be put to better use for service delivery.

“The biggest problem is decisions made like this by whoever is in charge need to be reprimanded, and this kind of expenditure must be looked at very carefully because awards can be done at a very low cost knowing city hall belongs to the municipality.”

eThekwini Municipality’s Marketing and Communications Deputy Director Gugu Sisilana said the funding was approved by council last year.

She said, “The council approved the Metro FM Music Awards partnership on 29 May 2025 for a total value of R20 million. Of this amount, R10 million was available at the time, and Council explicitly mandated the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to source the R10 million shortfall.

“The February 2026 report submitted to the Economic Development and Planning Committee (ECOD) did not request approval for new or additional funding. It served only to report back on the execution of the Council mandate already granted. The CFO has fulfilled that mandate. No new decision was sought or taken,” she said.

The City stated that the awards are valuable as they ensure national broadcast, digital, and on-air exposure through a leading public broadcaster platform. It said the awards are linked to various tourism inflows, including event attendance, accommodation occupancy, visitor spending, and temporary employment.

Moreover, they create work opportunities throughout the local creative and events value chain. This not only benefits the economy but also enhances destination marketing exposure before, during, and after the event.

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