Ramaphosa: Voter apathy fuelled by poor service delivery at municipalities

President Cyril Ramaphosa says poor service delivery by municipalities is fuelling voter apathy, the lack of trust between the people and government and is threatening democracy itself.

“We are alive to the reality that failures at local government level are widening the trust deficit between government and the citizenry. Unless these are remedied, we run the risk that [South Africans] become disillusioned with democracy itself,” he said.

He addressed the topic of local government and accountability at the SA Human Rights Commission National Conference on Local Governance in Sandton yesterday.

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Local government needed massive review and the national government would keep a close eye on at this sphere of government going forward, he said. When local government delivery failed, the impact was direct and devastating, as it immediately had an overarching impact negatively on the lives of people.

The president said it was disturbing that reports from the auditor-general, National Treasury and the department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs had shown the majority of municipalities were failing.

According to National Treasury, two thirds of the 257 municipalities were in financial distress, with only 41 receiving clean audits in the past financial year. These were in addition to auditor-general reports which revealed poor performances by some municipalities that scored disclaimers or adverse reports.

“What this means is that many municipalities are unable to deliver basic services and are unable to build and upgrade clinics and hospitals, and fix roads.

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“Political contestations and infighting, lack of skills, failure to adhere to legislative prescripts, poor governance, lack of accountability, as well as what I would call super corruption are causing instability in municipalities and eroding the provision of services,” Ramaphosa said.

“When local government works – when basic services like water, sanitation, education, electrification and healthcare – are distributed efficiently and equitably, people’s quality of life is improved, businesses thrive and economies grow and the dignity of our people is assured,” he said.