The ongoing service delivery failures in the Matjhabeng Local Municipality are to be escalated to Saki Mokoena, MEC of the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta).
“We will demand urgent corrective measures and accountability. Despite the municipality being placed under administration in terms of Section 139 of the Constitution, residents continue to endure worsening conditions, indicating that the intervention has thus far been unsuccessful. The DA councillors submit reports on service delivery failures daily across the municipality, yet these reports continue to be ignored.
“Residents are left to suffer the devastating consequences of a municipality that has collapsed under the weight of mismanagement, maladministration, and a lack of political will to govern effectively,” says Cllr Estelle Dansey.
“Families face severe and prolonged water shortages, with many communities going without water for several days. At the same time, raw sewerage is overflowing into neighbourhoods, posing serious health risks. Most recently, refuse collection has come to a complete halt, as employees have allegedly gone on strike over an unresolved overtime dispute,” she says.
To compound matters, there is little to no response to the backlog of streetlight repairs and other services.
“The Section 139 intervention has failed to deliver meaningful change for residents, who continue to ask: What is the municipality actually doing for its people?”
Dansey says they will ensure that those responsible for the neglect and collapse of services in Matjhabeng are held accountable.
“The residents of this municipality deserve better; they deserve a government that upholds its constitutional obligation to provide reliable, basic services.
“The people of Matjhabeng cannot continue to live without water, surrounded by refuse and sewage, while their constitutional rights are trampled. We will continue to fight relentlessly to restore service delivery and dignity to the residents of Matjhabeng.”
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