Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning

(a)    What are the current challenges faced by hung municipalities across the province?

• The pursuit for power by the various parties.
• Change as a result of political party alignment (“Kingmaker”).
• Motions of No Confidence primarily against the Executive Mayor, Deputy Executive Mayor and/or Speaker.
• Resistance by a current political party, in control, that has lost its majority, to call a meeting so as to elect a new Executive Mayor / Deputy Executive Mayor and/or Speaker.
• Election of a new Executive Mayor, Deputy Executive Mayor and Speaker.
• Filters down to the Administration: whereby disciplinary actions are being instituted against senior managers or senior managers resign.
• Causes of election of New Executive Mayor leads to new Mayoral Committee.
• Resignation of Executive Mayor leads to the Deputy Executive Mayor taking over the former’s roles and functions, as well as the dissolution of the Mayoral Committee.
• Establishment of new Mayoral Committee by the Deputy Executive Mayor.
• At the election of a new Executive Mayor the Mayoral Committee as appointed by the Deputy Executive Mayor dissolves and a new Mayoral Committee is established by the newly appointed Executive Mayor.
• Changes to the appointed Chairperson(s) in relation to Section 80 committees.
• The absence of formalised legislation regulating coalition politics.

(b)       what interventions has his Department initiated to resolve these challenges?

• The Department contributed to the legislative reform process, in particular the various proposed amendments to the Municipal Structures Act (the Coalitions Bill), as well as the Review of the White Paper on Local Government.
• When there is resistance by a current political party, in control, that has lost its majority, to call a meeting to elect a new Executive Mayor / Deputy Executive Mayor and/or Speaker the Department has invoked Section 29(1A) of the Municipal Structures Act, to call and chair such a meeting and monitors the election procedures.
• The Department has deployed departmental officials, upon request from a Municipality, to support Municipalities in certain functional areas and the provision of governance support. In addition, the Department has facilitated cooperative agreements, entered into between Municipalities, when a Municipal official is seconded.
• The Department has capacitated Municipal Councils by providing legal guidance through the issuing of correspondence and training in relation to the Roles and Responsibilities of Councillors and Committee Structures and Rules of Order.