Note to Editors: Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Cllr Dirk Kotze and Sesotho soundbite by Cllr Kabelo Moreeng.
The DA in Mangaung is demanding answers after the Council meeting scheduled for 30 September 2026 was cancelled, with the circulated agenda failing to include the long-awaited report of the Mangaung Disciplinary Board (MDB).
The omission is concerning because the MDB previously told Council it would present its first report by the end of September. September has passed, yet the report remains untabled, raising questions about when Council will receive it and when Mangaung residents will receive a transparent account of the Board’s work.
The MDB has existed for almost two years and was established to strengthen consequence management within the municipality. The Board previously informed Council that the City Manager had referred only 15 matters for investigation. Its report must therefore be assessed against years of Auditor-General (AG) findings on unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure, financial misconduct, and failures in consequence management, including matters involving billions of rand and a reported disciplinary matter of approximately R5.4 billion.
Several investigations show the scale of these accountability failures.
The IPTN/Hauweng investigation, dating back to 2015/16, concerns allegations of procurement irregularities involving buses and infrastructure. In November 2024, Council resolved to institute disciplinary proceedings, refer the matter to the Hawks and pursue civil recovery action. The SIU is separately investigating corruption allegations involving the IPTN.
The Hawks are also investigating alleged fraudulent payments linked to Mangaung’s indigent register between March 2022 and August 2023. The NPA secured a High Court freezing order involving approximately R4.19 million paid to a service provider connected to the work.
Other investigations have identified serious ICT governance and internal-control failures, allegedly irregular appointments of political staff to positions that were vacant or did not exist in the approved establishment, and failures to properly account for municipal assets. In one case, 79 zoo animals could not be located or verified, resulting in an estimated loss of approximately R1.76 million. The matter was referred to the Public Protector.
In August 2026, President Cyril Ramaphosa authorised an SIU investigation into nine Mangaung Metro Police-related contracts, covering vehicles, a fire truck, office upgrades, catering, branding and an IPTN contractor panel, including allegations of supplier overpayments and irregular expenditure.
The Hawks are also investigating allegations of unverifiable municipal overtime during 2022 and 2023, and VIP bodyguard overtime from 2017 to December 2021.
These investigations demonstrate that Mangaung’s accountability failures span years, involve multiple law-enforcement and oversight institutions, and raise questions over billions of rand in municipal expenditure.
Residents deserve measurable outcomes. Where misconduct is established, investigations must result in appropriate disciplinary action, recovery of losses and criminal referrals where warranted.
With less than a month remaining before the Local Government Elections, the continued absence of the MDB report is unacceptable. The DA is deeply concerned that the failure to deliver meaningful consequence management is allowing implicated officials and politically connected networks to escape accountability.
Mangaung residents deserve better. On 4 November, voters can reject corruption, political protection, and impunity and elect a DA-led government with the political will to enforce consequence management, protect public funds, and make Mangaung work for all.