By BAKANG MOKOTO
5 September 2024- The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Ditsobotla said it will write to the North West Premier, Lazarus Mokgosi, the North West MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Oageng Molapisi, as well as the North West MEC of Finance, Kenetswe Mosenogi, to urge them to take decisive action in dealing with the defiance and deliberate flouting of laws by the municipality.
The DA Constituency Head in Ditsobotla Local Municipality, Joe McGluwa said deliberate disorder and lawlessness have once again rendered the municipality unstable and will soon lead to the total collapse of the municipality once again. McGluwa alleged that the ANC is finding itself in the centre stage once more, as its divided caucus plays a key role in the commotion within the municipality.
“Pairing this with the defiance from councillors representing the EFF, F4SD and Save Ditsobotla, the instability of the municipality creates a ripple effect shaking the municipality to the core.
“Despite being warned by the Department of COGTA that the municipality cannot afford to appoint a Municipal Manager (MM), the grouping persisted,” he said.
He further said last week, the Speaker cancelled a planned sitting citing a security threat. McGluwa added, however, the grouping went ahead with the sitting, tabled a motion against him and nominated a new Speaker.
“Today, the new Speaker called for a council sitting to appoint senior managers—another irregular appointment process. All this is taking place within a municipality that cannot afford to pay salaries or even deliver the most basic services, such as water and electricity, to the residents.
“Last week, the Auditor General (AG) also revealed in his report that Ditsobotla is one of only two municipalities in the country that did not submit its 2022/2023 Annual Financial Statements (AFS),” said McGluwa.
He said if no response on their letters comes forth within the next seven days, they will have no choice, but to seek the intervention of COGHSTA Minister, Velinkosi Hlabisa. McGluwa said the residents and businesses of Ditsobotla are suffering.
“We call on all parties in the GNU at national level to bring the national sobriety into this municipality for the sake of the residents of Ditsobotla, who deserve none of this current drama.
“Although the DA in Ditsobotla wishes to distance itself from the chaos that is the municipality, we will not stop fighting for the residents until Ditsobotla Local Municipality and the town as a whole return to their former glory,” he said.
The Guardian 