ActionSA Calls for Fresh Elections in Ditsobotla

ActionSA notes that the Distobotla Local Municipality in the North-West has been dissolved and placed under administration by the ANC. It is not lost on us that this is a nefarious tactic often used by the ANC to acknowledge its failures in local government without actually doing anything to address the systemic breakdown in good governance that led to the administration in the first place.

In fact, many of these municipalities remain under administration for years without any meaningful steps being taken to rehabilitate them and restore service delivery for the residents affected. In some cases, administrations work to exacerbate the breakdown in service delivery.

As such ActionSA calls for fresh elections to be held in the Ditsobotla Municipality so that the residents may be afforded their constitutional right to vote out the ANC government in that municipality and elect a new government that will serve their needs and provide them with the basic services they so desperately need.

Since the 2021 Local Government Elections in November 2021, this municipality has had two mayors, two speakers and two municipal managers in just 10 months. Equitable share grants have been withheld by Treasury which has affected municipal services. Just last week ANC municipal officials were held hostage due to the complete meltdown of governance in the municipality because the residents are fed up with their treatment.

ActionSA does not condone the breaking of the law, however, the residents of this municipality need recourse and the Constitution of the Republic offers such recourse.

Section 139(1)( c ) of the Constitution provides for fresh elections to be held and it is high time that residents are afforded the opportunity to elect their public representatives if indeed those elected in November 2021 have failed them.

To this end, I will make submissions to ActionSA’s Senate asking it to consider contesting the municipality and providing the residents with a real alternative to the beleaguered ANC government that has long since abandoned its commitment to the people it vowed to serve.

At present there are about 30 municipalities under administration- some of which have been under ANC administration for two years without any signs of improvement.

There is no doubt in our minds that placing these municipalities under administration is nothing but smoke and mirrors to create the illusion of intervention but continuing with the pilfering of these municipalities as has become synonymous with ANC governments in all spheres of public life.

I will therefore write to the North-West MEC for Human Settlements, Cooperative Government and Traditional Affairs, Lena Miga, requesting that she give effect to section 139(1)( c ) of the Constitution and move that fresh elections be held in this municipality.

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