On Thursday, 07 April 2022 the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality faced the music as they have been placed under national administration. This is happening just a day before South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to hold a DDM imbizo in Bloemfontein at Dr. Petrus Molemela stadium.
In a statement issued by Government Communications, the cabinet held a virtual meeting on Wednesday and the cabinet approved the intervention in terms of Section 139(7) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1996, read together with Section 150 of the Municipal Finance Management Act 56 of 2003.
Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality has over the past been in the spotlight for many things, including the protests, not forgetting one where a small boy lost his innocent soul during Mangaung Shutdown last year in May.
WATCH:
A visit to the graveyard is a mission as the graveyards have turned into forests, and potholes in the metro city are swimming pools where children in the township learn how to swim.
The residents know that roads take a million years when and if it is decided to fix them, the state of the metro is nothing but a joke.
This is not something that the provincial government was not aware of, and for an office that always screams “helping our people,” one might have expected the government to jump in a long time ago, way before the 2021 Local Government Elections.
The provincial government failed to assist the municipality and never tried to intervene in any way, this desolation should come as an embarrassment, this goes to show that the leadership of the Free State Province doesn’t believe in the “by the people, for the people principle.”
Sefora Ntombela, Free State Premier did nothing as well and the same goes for her EXCO.
Even former president Thabo Mbeki spoke about Mangaung but of course like they say in Sesotho “di kena ka mona di tswa ka mona”.
One can only hope that this desolation sends a strong message to the MEC of COGTA, Mxolisi Dukwana, who is probably vouching for ANC chairman and ultimately the Premier of the province, this must-have crushed his hopes of being a leader of this province, after the conference that will be held by the ANC later in December.
Dukwana even went into metro’s operations including interdicting the municipality which affected salaries.
This must be very bad for president Ramaphosa considering Dukwana is an ally and his failures could have repercussions on the president’s second term as the unwritten expectation is Dukwana must deliver Free State but he is fast losing support in regions including his faction.
Step UP SA News has it in good authority there is a dark horse warming to challenge Dukwana, Manyoni, and Makgoe for the provincial hot chair.
As if things can’t get any worse, the community of Brandford will today meet at 10h00 among others to demand the president and premier’s intervention on matters affecting service delivery. Its alleged the local municipality has two Municipal Managers reporting for duty at the same time.
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