Speaking in a presentation earlier today (5 March 2020), Gauteng premier David Makhura has announced that the City of Tshwane will be placed under administration.
Makhura stated that the Gauteng executive committee met on Wednesday to assess the developments in Tshwane and decided to invoke section 139(1) (c) of the Constitution. This means the Tshwane Municipal Council is dissolved and an administrator will be appointed to run the municipality until a new council is elected within 90 days, he said.
“As I promised, we will intervene decisively in any municipality when service delivery grinds to a halt and residents are suffering. The provincial government is guided by the Constitution and law of the republic in terms of what needs to be done under the circumstances," Makhura said.
“Gauteng is taking this drastic step in the best interest of the people of Tshwane, All necessary steps in terms of the Constitution will be followed to give effect to the intervention.”
The decision comes after the council had effectively become dysfunctional and council meetings had collapsed since November 2019.
The metro currently has no mayor, no mayoral council and no city manager as a result of a political impasse. Before this leadership vacuum in the metro, Tshwane was governed by a DA-led coalition government in the hung municipality.
The issue came to a head in February after the resignation of mayor Stevens Mokgalapa which led to the automatic dissolution of the entire executive council.
In a statement after the briefing, the Gauteng provincial government said: “The city of Tshwane has been deteriorating rapidly and is evidently on the decline. Residents are suffering, while political parties are fighting in council and in the courts.”
“ ... The provincial government has a constitutional responsibility and obligation to the residents of Tshwane to create stability and ascertain continuity of service delivery.”The new council election is now expected to dominate debate around the municipality as the parties continue to fight for control.
