The province's Premier, Bushy Maape, will then deliver his State of the Province Address (Sopa) at the Legislature Chamber in Mmabatho. Maape’s address comes while some areas in the province were flooded after heavy rainfall. Affected areas include Tswaing, Mahikeng, Rustenburg, Moretele, Matlosana, JB Marks and Lekwa Teemane municipalities. A ward in the Madibeng Municipality has recently been declared a disaster area by the municipality after floods swept away houses and roads.

ALSO READ: North West communities urged to be cautious amid heavy rains

Maape is expected to highlight the provincial government’s plans to resuscitate the economy, expedite the delivery of basic services, and the creation of jobs, amongst other issues faced by the province. It has previously been reported that some of the government departments in the province collectively owe R1.8 billion in rates and taxes to municipalities within the province. It turns out that national government departments owe at least R872 million, while provincial departments owe at least R984 million. Most of the debt is to the Mahikeng Local Municipality, to which both national and provincial departments owe at least R852 million, while Moses Kotane, the City of Matlosana and Madibeng Local Municipalities are owed at least R298 million, R175 million and R168 million respectively.

ALSO READ: Concern over multibillion-rand public transport system in North West

Concerns have recently been raised by the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the province, with allegations that the municipality, which is responsible for the Rustenburg Rapid Transport (RRT) project, has opted to spend another R2,6 billion to buy minibus taxis instead of rapid transit buses to ferry commuters. The project in question is the multibillion-rand flagship public transportation initiative in Rustenburg, which was launched in 2010. The DA’s member on the Portfolio Committee on Transport, Sello Seitlholo, said the RRT project has effectively collapsed, leaving the public with little to show for the billions of rands that were invested in the project. "The RRT was introduced as a game-changer for the city's transportation system, with the aim of connecting existing rail systems, buses, and mini-bus taxis to provide easy access to public transportation for residents," he added.

ALSO READ: North West tennis centre restored to former glory

Some of the successes that Maape can boast about during his Sopa include the newly refurbished tennis centre in Mmabatho. The refurbishment was done by the Mahikeng Local Municipality and the formal handover to the provincial department of Arts, Culture, Sport and Recreation will be done after the refurbishment has been fully completed. Speaking to the spokesperson of the municipality, Elliot Moncho, he said there were three phases of renovations that needed to be completed and each phase had a budget of R20 million, with the entire cost of the project being R60 million. Currently, the municipality has completed the first two phases and is in the process of completing the last phase.

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