By REGINALD KANYANE
26 January 2025- The Deputy Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Dr Namane Dickson Masemola, undertook an accountability and assessment oversight meeting to Ngaka Modiri Molema District in the North West under the theme: “Every Municipality Must Work”. Masemola said this meeting stands as one of the important milestones in the work being done by CoGTA to turn around municipalities experiencing challenges.
Masemola further said the provincial leadership welcomed the visit as it is a catalyst that sets the tone for addressing head on the challenges facing the municipalities. He added that the engagement responded to the challenges raised by the state of local government report produced by DCoG and the local government audit outcomes report released by the auditor-general in August 2024, which painted a grim picture of the state of municipalities.
“This District Development Model (DDM), the Ministerial visits to priority Districts encourages an all-of-government and all-of-society approach to governance, emphasising the need for collaboration and coordination in an effort to ensure service delivery at the local level.
“The challenges identified from the presentations included, but not limited to corruption, which compromises effective governance in municipalities and ultimately service delivery. This includes poor leadership on various government programmes and contributes to challenges in service delivery.
“Hence, we called for strategic leadership in municipalities. The issue of skills was also raised looking at shortage of skills to work on various service delivery programmes of the government, including in supply chain management (SCM), this leading to delays in service delivery,” said Masemola.
He said the meeting urged that qualified people should be appointed to lead the work in municipalities. Masemola said the dilapidated infrastructure was also raised as one of the challenges, which inhibits effective service delivery challenges.
“Some prefer new infrastructure over maintaining existing one. The challenges with projects that are not completed suggest that there is no sufficient oversight, which might lead to delayed or no completion of projects which can assist in the delivery of service.
“The other key challenge that became clear from the discussions was poor financial management which can negatively affect service delivery. Mismanagement of finances has a ripple effect on the entire service delivery chain,” he said.
Masemola said the passing of unfunded budgets was described as the worst mistake, which will gradually move the municipality to being dysfunctional. He said the government has to ensure responsiveness in engaging communities on matters related to service delivery.
“Municipal officials can through their responsiveness lead to service delivery improvements. The discussions on the above and other perennial challenges, which frustrate service delivery and the effective and efficient functioning municipalities will contribute to an action plan that will be continually monitored for implementation.
“There is a need to move towards an ideal municipality anchored on the provisions of our constitution. We emphasise our through the implementation of Section 154 of the constitution,” said Masemola.
Meanwhile, the African National Congress (ANC) spokesperson in the North West, Tumelo Maruping said: “We warmly welcome the ministerial support and outreach led by Masemola, alongside North West Premier, Mr Lazarus Mokgosi, CoGHSTA MEC, Oageng Molapisi, Provincial Treasury MEC, Kenetswe Mosenogi and municipal leadership in Ngaka Modiri Molema District.
“This outreach comes as a result of ANC’s consultative engagement with various stakeholders, including ANC National Head Quarters regarding the persistent service delivery challenges particularly in Ditsobotla Local Municipality.”
Maruping said it also represents a crucial step in addressing the pressing developmental needs of the communities and enhancing service delivery in the district. He said the ANC applauds the government’s commitment to engaging with both executive and accountable authorities including community stakeholders to identify challenges and implement effective solutions.
“According to Section 154 of the constitution, this is a response to ongoing service delivery issues and demonstrates the government’s dedication to providing essential services that supports citizens’ well-being and development,” said Maruping.
The Guardian 