Note to Editors: Please find attached English soundbite by Cllr Ian Riddle, Afrikaans soundbite by Cllr Estelle Noordman and Sesotho soundbite by David Masoeu MPL.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) will intensify oversight and continue holding the ANC-run Mohokare Municipality accountable following the municipality’s ongoing financial collapse, which has now resulted in the non-payment of staff salaries and a further deterioration in service delivery across Zastron, Rouxville and Smithfield.
The municipality has gone on strike due to unpaid salaries. Centlec has attached the bank account of the ANC-run Mohokare Municipality over an outstanding amount exceeding R93 million, leaving the municipality unable to pay its creditors or employees. Although an agreement had reportedly been reached with Centlec to settle the debt, the Council failed to adhere to the agreement, resulting in the municipality’s entire bank account being attached. This has left the Council in a precarious financial position and effectively bankrupt.
The knock-on effect on service delivery has been devastating. Basic maintenance in the three towns of Zastron, Rouxville and Smithfield has virtually ground to a halt. During the past week, all three towns were left without water because purification plants had run out of chemicals.
During electrical breakdowns, there are often no vehicles available to address the problem because there is no fuel. Sewerage and water leaks are running down streets and causing major hygiene problems in the towns. After the recent heavy rains, a large majority of the roads, mainly in Rouxville, were damaged, with several houses flooding and access roads destroyed due to the lack of maintenance of stormwater drains and furrows.
All the while, the ANC is telling people that once it is re-elected in November 2026, everything will change. The ANC knows that the situation has become so bad that it cannot possibly dig itself out of this hole.
In all the years the ANC has run the Mohokare Municipality, it has never attained a clean audit, and if people insist on re-electing them, they will be trapped in the same environment and probably worse off than they are now.
It is time our residents realised that the only party with any chance of sorting out this disastrous situation is the DA.