Staff Reporter
Bloemfontein – The Masilonyana Local Municipality is once again hogging the headlines for all the wrong reasons; from salary delays and poor service delivery to now facing the prospect of contempt of court proceedings.
Fresh from a protest that nearly claimed the lives of two people linked to Free State Premier Joyce “Pretenders” Mathae, the municipality is now on the verge of another legal showdown, with contempt of court proceedings potentially looming.
With a deadline of today, Sholtz Attorneys, representing the municipality’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Amos Makoae, has thrown a spanner in the works.
Makoae was dismissed on 22 June 2026. Acting Judge Steyn subsequently ruled in his favour on 6 August 2026 and ordered his reinstatement.
However, upon attempting to return to work, Makoae was allegedly barred from resuming his duties. Sholtz Attorneys has now drawn a line in the sand, demanding that the municipality comply with the court order.
In a letter addressed to the municipality, the attorneys said: “It has now been six (6) calendar days since your clients were ordered to allow our client to resume his duties as Chief Financial Officer; however, the status quo remains. The Council of the Masilonyana Local Municipality has, accordingly, had ample time to consider the Order granted by Steyn AJ.”
The attorneys further demanded immediate compliance with paragraph 3 of the court order, including written confirmation that Makoae would be allowed to return to active service and that his outstanding remuneration, dating back to the termination of his services on 22 June 2026, would be paid.
The municipality has been given until 16h00 today, Thursday, 13 August 2026, to provide the requested confirmation, failing which Sholtz Attorneys said it had instructions to institute urgent contempt proceedings “without hesitation”.
The looming legal battle also raises questions about the municipality’s leadership and financial management, particularly if Makoae returns while another person is currently performing the functions of CFO.
Will the council blink today, or will Masilonyana find itself in court once again?
Free State municipalities continue to collapse, beke le beke, while residents are left to grapple with poor service delivery. At this point, it is no longer funny.
The acting City Manager is Thembekile Ngezi while the acting CFO Keneilwe Lepesa, both are from COGTA but we we come back to them and people who seconded them because councillors allege there is resolution to that defect.
This is a developing story.
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