Popular tourist town in South Africa in serious trouble
The troubled Madibeng Local Municipality in North West is once again under scrutiny, as the provincial government appointed a law firm to probe serious allegations of maladministration and misconduct.
The popular tourist town of Hartbeespoort, with the Hartbeespoort Dam and the whitewater rapids of the Crocodile River nestled along Magaliesberg mountain range, along with Brits, are located in Madibeng.
Each year, hundreds of thousands of tourists visit the area to experience wildlife encounters, outdoor activities, and cultural experiences.
However, the municipality has long been marred in issues relating to governance.
Recently, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa requested the intervention of North West MEC for CoGTA and Human Settlements, Gaoage Oageng Molapisi, amid growing concerns about the municipality’s operations.
Allegations include duplicate payments to service providers, ignored forensic reports, unauthorised changes to accounts, and irregular appointments of officials.
A whistleblower report has further revealed systemic failures, including supply chain flaws, financial mismanagement, and HR irregularities.
Millions of rands in Municipal Infrastructure Grant funds were allegedly diverted from projects meant to benefit its areas.
In addition, the municipality’s failure to convene mandatory council meetings, which are essential for approving budgets and ensuring service delivery, has exacerbated the situation, with residents facing an unreliable water supply, neglected roads, and irregular waste collection.
Earlier this year, City Press reported that the municipality’s top leadership, including the mayor, municipal manager, CFO, and directors of technical services and human settlements, were either suspended or placed on special leave amid allegations of financial misconduct.
The independent Johannesburg-based law firm, Attorneys Kally, has been appointed to conduct the investigation.
Their final report is due by 30 August 2025 and will be submitted to the MEC, the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), and the national CoGTA Minister.
“The allegations are of a serious nature, and we expect councillors and officials of the municipality to cooperate and assist in providing the necessary information that will assist the investigation,” said Molapisi during a recent council sitting in Brits.
Service delivery woes and reactions
Madibeng, home to over 500,000 people, is rich in mineral and agricultural resources and boosted by tourism at the popular Hartbeespoort Dam, but has long faced significant governance and service delivery woes.
Madibeng has been under administration on six occasions, the first being in July 2010. Being under administration means a municipality has lost the ability to manage its own affairs due to serious financial mismanagement, service delivery failures, or governance breakdowns.
This is done under Section 139 of the Constitution, which allows a provincial government to intervene.
An administrator is appointed to oversee key functions, such as approving budgets, managing finances, or addressing governance issues, until the municipality can resume proper functioning.
It is intended as a last resort to restore order and improve services.
The municipality owes nearly R2 billion to creditors, including R1.48 billion to Eskom for bulk electricity and over R800 million for bulk water.
To make matters worse, collection rates have been dismal, with households, businesses and government departments owing the municipality almost R4 billion.
Democratic Alliance (DA) Madibeng councillor Erna Rossouw said that the party “welcomes the North West government’s formal investigation into corruption scandals.”
“Madibeng has struggled for years with unstable leadership, poor governance and collapsing service delivery. In the last four years alone, the municipality has seen a string of acting municipal managers.”
“Despite repeated interventions under Section 139(1)b of the Constitution, political infighting, corruption, and poor accountability have continued.”
“Councillors are frustrated by a lack of feedback or real results from these interventions, which has fuelled public scepticism… The DA will fully cooperate with this investigation,” added Rossouw.
The Madibeng executive did not respond to queries by the time of publication. Comment will be added if received.
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