Some political parties in the Free State including the Democratic Alliance and the VF Plus have welcomed the Free State High Court Ruling ordering the Free State Provincial government to intervene in Ngwathe Local Municipality under Section 139(5) of the constitution.
The DA said it welcomes the ruling handed down by Judge JP Daffue in the Free State High Court, ordering the immediate dissolution of the Ngwathe Local Municipality’s council and compelling the Free State provincial government to intervene under Section 139(5) of the Constitution.
According to Carina Serfontein party’s councillor in Ngwathe, the ruling confirms what the DA and the residents of Ngwathe, have long known that the municipality is completely dysfunctional and has failed in its constitutional obligations to provide even the most basic services, including access to water, sanitation, and infrastructure maintenance.
“The DA now calls on Premier MaQueen Letsoha-Mathae to implement the court’s orders without delay:
Dissolve the Ngwathe Municipal Council;
Appoint a competent administrator;
Approve an urgent financial recovery plan and budget to restore basic services.” said Serfontein.
The VF Plus in the province said this court decision provides an opportunity to reverse the mismanagement and deterioration in the municipality, provided competence forms the basis of the recovery plan and not political frameworks.
“The decline of Ngwathe is a direct result of incompetent governance and lack of accountability. Residents experience this daily in the form of water shortages, sanitation crises and poor service delivery. The time for symbolic intervention is over, it must now be acted practically and with expertise.
The VF Plus insists on a clearly outlined and shared recovery strategy, with measurable short-, medium- and long-term goals that need to be communicated transparently to the municipal council and the community” said Tammy Breedt, VF Plus-LP in NRP (Free State)
