MAHIKENG, NORTH WEST — The upcoming North West municipal elections are poised to be highly contested as the province grapples with severe service delivery collapses and widespread governance failures. With 22 municipalities comprising four districts and 18 local municipalities, the November polls will see more than 70 political parties and over 50 independent candidates vying for power in a region where political instability and financial mismanagement have heavily impacted residents.
Currently, the province is navigating significant political fragmentation, with four hung municipal councils in Rustenburg, JB Marks, Ditsobotla, and Lekwa Teemane. The governance crisis has prompted widespread government intervention. Five municipalities—Kagisano-Molopo, Mamusa, Maquassi Hills, Madibeng, and Matlosana—are currently under provincial administration. Additionally, in an unprecedented move last year, a troubled municipality was placed under national intervention due to ongoing governance failures, financial mismanagement, and the collapse of service delivery. Municipalities such as Madibeng, Naledi, Maquassi Hills, Tswaing, Ditsobotla, and Mamusa have been officially categorized as distressed.
Cooperative Governance representative MEC Gaoage Molapisi stated that the department’s interventions are yielding positive results despite ongoing political and administrative instability.
“Where there has been instability, whether political or administrative, we have managed to intervene,” Molapisi explained. The department has issued directives under Section 131A to municipalities with non-functioning councils, providing specific timeframes to address their operational failures.
However, experts argue that deeper systemic issues remain unresolved. Dr. Arthur Shopola, a local government expert from North West University, attributes the dire state of the municipalities to poor leadership and a lack of consequence management.
“There is poor quality of oversight, but also broken administrative systems,” Dr. Shopola noted. He emphasized that without a consequence management system to penalize those who violate legislative prescripts governing local government, the current municipal failures are inevitable.
The disconnect between administrative compliance and actual service delivery is starkly highlighted in the 2024/25 audit report by Auditor General Tsakani Maluleke. The report indicates that overall audit outcomes for the province’s municipalities have improved since the 2020/21 financial year, with over 10 municipalities recording positive progress.
Despite these improved audit outcomes, the report notes clear shortcomings in the municipalities’ ability to provide essential services, particularly reliable water supplies and proper road infrastructure.
Residents on the ground are feeling the brunt of this disparity. Many expressed frustration, noting they have grown old under the current government without seeing meaningful improvements. Citizens report being forced to drill their own boreholes for water, while others struggle with unflushable toilets and frequent electricity shortages.
According to the North West Department of Cooperative Governance, only four municipalities were deemed fully functional during the 2024/25 financial year: Moretele, Bojanala, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, and one additional local municipality. Meanwhile, 16 municipalities are considered at risk, though they are showing progressive improvements in key functional areas identified by the department’s systems.
To address these persistent challenges, Auditor General Maluleke has issued several recommendations to the provincial government following the release of the municipal audit report. Maluleke recommended that Premier Lazarus Mokgosi establish a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework for all municipal support measures managed by the provincial treasury and the Department of Cooperative Governance. This framework must include clear timelines and a dedicated accountability team to ensure that interventions translate into tangible service delivery for the province’s residents.
