Note to Editors: Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Cllr Doreen Wessels and Sesotho soundbite by Cllr Diphapang Mofokeng.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Phumelela Local Municipality condemns the administration’s reduction of the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) process to an empty bureaucratic exercise. Although the IDP is meant to drive sustainable development, public participation, and efficient governance, the municipality continues to ignore community submissions and ward councillors’ inputs in favour of unrealistic, recycled promises that never materialise.
The DA calls on the municipal administration to immediately stop manipulating IDP processes, overhaul the dysfunctional billing system and present a realistic operational plan to address the growing governance and service delivery crisis facing Phumelela Municipality.
Public participation has declined significantly because residents no longer believe their concerns are being heard.
At the centre of this collapse is a structurally unfunded budget, where funds are continuously stripped from service delivery and infrastructure to balance the municipality’s finances. The result has been devastating service delivery failures and the collapse of critical infrastructure across towns.
Basic services are in crisis. Water treatment works remain unmanaged, leading to severe water shedding and periods where major towns are left without running water. Environmental conditions continue to deteriorate as river systems are polluted by illegal dumping sites.
The municipality’s financial management and billing systems are equally dysfunctional. Consumer accounts are not issued on time, revenue collection is failing, and millions of Rands in unallocated payments remain unresolved. Business zoning records are outdated, allowing businesses to operate illegally on residential properties, while the indigent register has not been properly updated.
Phumelela is further crippled by a severe skills shortage, with underqualified individuals occupying key municipal positions. Weak internal controls have contributed to the ongoing stripping of municipal infrastructure, including cable theft and vandalised streetlights, while criminal cases remain unresolved despite significant spending on municipal security.
Local economic development has stalled as investors and developers are ignored or turned away, worsening unemployment, poverty and hunger. Communities continue to suffer from unreliable access to clean water, sanitation and public safety.