Millions wasted on landlines — why not use VoIP, asks DA

Despite a financial crisis, the Gauteng provincial government continues to spend millions on outdated Telkom landlines instead of switching to cost-effective voice over internet protocol (VoIP) technology.

- Oratile Mashilo

This is according to an audit by the province's department of e-government.

The department presented its findings to the portfolio committee earlier this month, confirming that the total expenditure on Telkom services for the 2023-24 financial year amounted to R38.1 million.

The biggest spenders were the department of health (R29.1 million), the department of education (R3.2 million), and the department of social development (R916 918,19).

The DA yesterday criticised the provincial government's failure to implement cost-saving measures despite its ongoing financial problems.

"Given the financial crisis the GPG is in due to reckless and excessive expenditure, departments should be saving costs, which is not the case," said DA Gauteng spokesperson for e-Government, Michael Waters.