As Gamagara Municipality scrambles to avoid being removed from Eskom’s debt relief programme, the Democratic Alliance (DA) has secured Council’s unanimous support for an independent investigation into the Municipal Manager’s failure to inform Council that the municipality had fallen into non-compliance with the conditions of the debt relief programme.
Council also supported a Section 78 investigation, as required by National Treasury, to determine the most effective and sustainable model for electricity service delivery in Gamagara. This process forms part of broader efforts to prevent the municipality from being expelled from the debt relief programme.
Since joining the programme in December 2023, Gamagara has demonstrated a lack of commitment to meeting its obligations. Despite repeated warnings from COGHSTA and National Treasury, the municipality was regularly issued with notices of non-compliance.
Throughout this period, the DA consistently requested updates on the municipality’s compliance. In May this year, the DA again warned that Gamagara’s debt to Eskom had escalated to R816 million, up from R650 million in February 2025 and R747 million in September 2025, highlighting the municipality’s worsening financial mismanagement.
Each time, Council was assured that everything was on track. Those assurances have now been exposed as false.
If Gamagara is removed from the debt relief programme, it stands to lose substantial debt relief while remaining liable for hundreds of millions of rands in outstanding debt, together with accumulated interest. Eskom could then implement stringent credit control measures, including legal action to recover the debt.
The repercussions would be devastating. Residents and businesses could once again face load reduction, undermining economic recovery after years of loadshedding. Indigent households could also lose access to free basic electricity.
While the DA welcomes Council’s earlier decision not to extend the acting Chief Financial Officer’s contract, accountability must not end there. The Municipal Manager must also answer for the longstanding governance failures that have placed the municipality at risk.
We therefore call on the municipality to appoint an independent investigator without delay and to ensure that those responsible are held fully accountable.
Gamagara’s residents, businesses and mining sector depend on a reliable electricity supply to sustain jobs, investment and economic growth. They should not be forced to carry the consequences of Gamagara’s failure to responsibly manage its finances.