The SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) warns in an inquiry report detailing a systemic collapse of service delivery within local government structures across the Northern Cape that this will be done to foster accountability, transparency and answerability. The inquiry was launched on Wednesday (22/4) at a media briefing in the Garden Court Hotel in Kimberley.

The report is a formal record of the widespread dysfunction discovered following an investigation into numerous community complaints regarding the failure of essential public services.

The commission’s report indicates the provincial local government system is experiencing challenges with financial governance, technical skills, and long-term planning.

According to commission, the administrative failures are not isolated incidents but represent a repeated pattern of mismanagement where short-term stop-gap measures are prioritised over sustainable infrastructure development.

An example cited is the expenditure on water tankering, which municipalities have used as a costly and temporary substitute for functional water pipes and systems, stating this reliance on emergency interventions has depleted municipal funds while failing to resolve the underlying technical issues that deprive the community of their basic rights to water and sanitation.

Zamani Saul has been urged to declare a provincial state of disaster regarding the severe sewage spillages and sanitation failures in Sol Plaatje municipality. Photo: Northern Cape Provincial Government

Furthermore, the inquiry found several municipalities are failing to communicate effectively with their plans, a lapse that has led to rising levels of community frustration and social instability.

In response to these findings, the commission has issued a series of urgent recommendations aimed at restoring accountability and institutional stability.

These include a call for the National Treasury to investigate an alternative funding structure, such as paying statutory obligations directly rather than transferring funds into municipal accounts where they risk being mismanaged.

Additionally, the report suggests the Northern Cape provincial government should consider formal interventions under the constitution. Premier Zamani Saul has also been urged to declare a provincial state of disaster regarding the severe sewage spillages and sanitation failures currently troubling Sol Plaatje municipality.

Moving forward, the commission has committed to a monitoring strategy, warning that it will publicly name and shame any institution that fails to implement these necessary reforms to protect the dignity of the residents.

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