As the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) confirms that municipal service delivery in the Northern Cape has collapsed, the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the province urges the provincial government to improve its municipal financial monitoring systems to ensure greater service delivery efficiency in municipal budgeting and procurement processes.
The recently tabled SAHRC report confirms that there is a stubborn misalignment between municipal resources and real service delivery needs, exemplified by the expensive water tanker hiring practices in Emthanjeni. During the October 2025 public hearings, the municipal manager admitted that the municipality spends R600 000 each month to hire water tankers. At the same time, the municipality decided to prioritise the purchasing of ten luxury vehicles instead of much-needed service delivery vehicles like refuse removal trucks or honey suckers.
While Emthanjeni spends R7.2 million annually on yellow fleet rentals, Kai !Garib spends R15.6 million and Gamagara spends R14.4 million. The SAHRC report notes that this prolonged reliance on water tankering as a substitute for functional water infrastructure actually diverts limited financial resources away from sustainable, long-term solutions.
When questioned about this lack of common sense and the absence of cost-effective decisions in a recent sitting of the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature, premier Zamani Saul committed to building better intergovernmental relationships with local governments.
This commitment might be a matter of too little being done too late to restore dignified service delivery to residents. Those who are paying the real price of municipal mismanagement should remember that it is only the DA with a proven track record of good, clean governance that guarantees reliable, affordable services to all.