---
title: "Want our votes? Adopt our Rebuild Plan, NMB civil society tells political parties"
description: "Nelson Mandela Bay civil society unveils an 18‑month Rebuild Plan demanding measurable fixes, public monitoring and a formal oversight role – and will condition votes on delivery."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "CITIZEN OVERSIGHT"
author: "Kyran Blaauw"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/kyran-blaauw/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-09-15-want-our-votes-adopt-our-rebuild-plan-nmb-civil-society-tells-political-parties/"
published: "2026-09-15T19:47:09"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 1319
---

# Want our votes? Adopt our Rebuild Plan, NMB civil society tells political parties

> Nelson Mandela Bay civil society unveils an 18‑month Rebuild Plan demanding measurable fixes, public monitoring and a formal oversight role – and will condition votes on delivery.

By Kyran Blaauw · Published 15 September 2026, 21:47 SAST

## Key points
- Nelson Mandela Bay Civil Society Coalition has launched an 18‑month Rebuild Plan (stabilise, strengthen, consolidate) and says its vote will be conditional on delivery.
- Practical fixes include a temporary specialist “Swat team” to unblock operations and a monthly public dashboard tracking vacancies, water/electricity, spending and complaints.
- The coalition demands a formal, permanent civil‑society oversight role, independent input into senior appointments and a governance compact to hold leaders to account.
- Its hard targets are measurable and urgent – fill key posts in six months, cut water/electricity losses, 90% streetlights/signage, 72‑hour pothole/complaint turnarounds – with an economic recovery push due at a late‑September summit.

## Content

Whoever takes control of Nelson Mandela Bay after the local government elections on 4 November will inherit a metro in desperate need of repair – and civil society has laid out what it expects the new administration to do.

The [Nelson Mandela Bay Civil Society Coalition](https://nmbcsc.org.za/), made up of business leaders, church representatives and organised labour, has launched an 18-month Rebuild Plan aimed at stabilising the municipality, restoring essential services, strengthening its institutions and rebuilding confidence in the city’s economy.

But the coalition is not simply offering another recovery blueprint. It wants the incoming administration to formally partner with civil society to monitor the municipality’s performance and hold political and administrative leaders to account.

[Media](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/attachments/2997/CivilSocietyNMBM-RebuildPlanFinal-31August2026_667531.pdf)

Coalition chairperson Monga Peter said communities and non-state organisations could no longer remain “spectators” while the metro battles institutional instability and failing municipal systems.

“We will not be spectators going forward, and our vote and our people’s vote will be attached to some demands, some wishes, to those that contest state power,” said Peter.

With political parties campaigning ahead of the November 4 elections, Peter emphasised that the coalition is strategically presenting its terms to all contenders for City Hall.

“If you are wanting our votes, this is what we put forward. Some kind of a wish list and some kind of a demand,” he said.

![Chairperson of the Coalition for Civil Society Monga Peter highlights emergency issues that the Nelson Mandela Bay metro needs to address to stabilise the municipality. (Photo: Andisa Bonani) 28 January 2026.](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/a9CRUAYzU397ukUuyANVbOSWNxU=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/Kyran-RescuePlan2_489975.jpg)

*The chairperson of the Nelson Mandela Bay Civil Society Coalition, Monga Peter. (Photo: Andisa Bonani)*

“The situation cannot be treated as a municipal administration matter alone,” said Peter. “When water and electricity services are unreliable, roads and waste management deteriorate, municipal approvals take too long, and the administration struggles to function effectively, the consequences are felt across the city.”

[Read more

How leaks, billing write‑offs and Excel accounting pushed Nelson Mandela Bay to the brink

August 11, 2026 ![Image](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/bJ_7VUnmQ9cl-QD4fI7_A1LaO9c=/450x0/smart/file/attachments/orphans/ED_0004702_223699_716093.jpg)](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-08-11-how-leaks-billing-write-offs-and-excel-accounting-pushed-nelson-mandela-bay-to-the-brink/)

He said these failures increased costs for businesses, delayed investment decisions, placed additional pressure on households and workers, and affected municipal revenue.

### A three-phase plan

The Rebuild Plan is divided into three phases. During the first three months, the focus will be on stabilisation, including leadership and governance gaps, essential services, municipal finances and urgent operational problems.

In months three to 12, the focus will be on strengthening the administration by addressing skills shortages, improving systems and bringing social partners into the recovery effort.

The final six months will be used to consolidate the gains, rebuild confidence and support investment and job creation.

In addition, the coalition is proposing something it says has been largely absent from previous municipal recovery efforts: a formal role for civil society and other non-state actors to support and monitor the administration.

“We are not contesting state power. Year in, year out, all the plans that have been there never had a component of civil society. We are envisaging a situation where we form part of a complementary governance effort,” said Peter.

![The broken traffic lights delivered to the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality's Customer Care Centre in Kariega remained outside on 15 July 2026, with no apparent attempt having been made to remove them. (Photo: Deon Ferreira)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/eSNDNx5rqdOSD1z57ecv-MQuzbg=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/Kyran-RescuePlan4_979440.jpg)

*Defective traffic lights dumped outside a Nelson Mandela Bay municipal office by Kariega businessman Jevon Dyer to protest against the deterioration of municipal services. (Photo: Deon Ferreira)*

The coalition says its involvement would continue beyond the 18-month recovery programme.

“We said when we signed the social contract, that we would be a permanent feature pre-4 November and we will be a permanent feature post-4 November,” said Peter.

### A Swat team and public dashboard

One of the most significant proposals is a temporary specialist “Swat Team” covering finance, engineering, legal services, human resources, governance, service delivery and planning.

The team would work alongside the city manager and municipal officials to unblock urgent problems and transfer skills rather than create a parallel administration.

The plan also calls for a monthly public dashboard to track:

- Senior management vacancies and governance decisions;
- Legal, disciplinary, and procurement matters;
- Water, electricity, road, and waste management performance; and
- Capital/grant spending, revenue, and pending planning applications.

Additionally, the coalition wants a greater say in the appointment of senior municipal officials.

Peter said the death of CFO Jackson Ngcelwane in August had left the City with only one permanent senior official, Chief Operating Officer Lonwabo Ngoqo, who is also the acting city manager.

Peter said an independent partner should be involved in selecting permanent senior officials.

“We are demanding something completely different insofar as the panel to select those men and women that will bring in new culture,” he said.

### Measurable targets

The Rebuild Plan sets several concrete benchmarks, starting with filling all critical leadership roles within six months. Infrastructure priorities include sharply reducing water losses from 63% to 30% and electricity losses from 27% to 15%.

The plan mandates keeping 90% of streetlights functional, repairing 90% of road signs and freeway barriers, and fixing potholes on major arteries within 72 hours of receiving a report. Municipal service complaints should also receive a response or turnaround within 72 hours.

![Estelle-StreetlightTender](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/_5OfVcDzB1J4BAFo7BASawpnESE=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/DSC_9572-copy_837288.jpg)

*Streetlights along William Moffett Expressway in Gqeberha were not working on 25 June, with similar outages reported across the metro. (Photo: Deon Ferreira)*

The coalition wants at least 80% of planned capital expenditure to be achieved, with monthly monitoring of capital and grant spending and public reporting via the dashboard.

The plan proposes a governance compact between political and administrative role-players, clearer separation of responsibilities between council structures and the administration, and stronger oversight of disciplinary, legal and financial matters.

Peter stressed that the plan was not intended to replace the municipality or create a “second municipality”, but rather to establish a “complementary governance effort”.

### Economic recovery

The coalition will present its Rebuild Plan at the Nelson Mandela Bay Economic Summit on 29-30 September to lock in concrete commitments, assign responsibilities, allocate resources and establish firm deadlines. For Peter, the initiative’s true test will be visible progress. “By the 18th month,” he noted, “we should be able to say we \[can\] see improvement.”

Those improvements are urgently needed to revive the metro’s tourism industry. Coalition member Shaun van Eck said the municipality’s most basic responsibilities – maintaining safety, cleanliness and infrastructure – were fundamental to the industry’s recovery.

“The basics of tourism are what should be delivered by the municipality – so, safety, cleanliness and infrastructure. The fact that those aren’t being delivered has hurt tourism,” he said.

Van Eck said the city had yet to recover to pre-Covid tourism numbers, with municipal service failures continuing to weigh on the sector.

While initiatives such as cameras along the beachfront, neighbourhood watches and work by the Mandela Bay Development Agency were positive, he said they had not gone far enough.

“The industry is dire at the moment. Many smaller businesses are hanging on by their fingernails, and they need to be encouraged,” said Van Eck.

![Kyran-BeachfrontLights](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/W9OQuUNmbxPR4r-DMweV9qNcuPw=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/Photo3_520737.jpg)

*Vandalised showers at King’s Beach. (Photo: Deon Ferreira)*

He welcomed the coalition’s broader approach, saying tourism could benefit from being part of a larger civil society effort involving organisations with different skills and expertise.

### Rebuilding the metro as an economic hub

Siyabonga Hans, who leads the coalition’s economic recovery task team, said rebuilding Nelson Mandela Bay had to go beyond fixing municipal services.

The metro also needed to create conditions that encouraged trade, investment and job creation.

“Nelson Mandela Bay is an economic hub of the province – and that’s why we have taken the stride to say, let us rebuild the metro,” said Hans.

“To bring business to a city, you must have a trade policy. When you speak about a trade policy, what are the good things that bring people towards your region?” he said.

![A man searches through waste at an illegal dumping site in Gqeberha's northern areas on 11 June 2026. Residents say irregular refuse collection has contributed to the growing accumulation of waste in some neighbourhoods. (Photo: Deon Ferreira)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/TX_UwLrlw27LUb3qPgb8ehCahu4=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/Kyran-RescuePlan3_897163.jpg)

*An illegal dumping site in Gqeberha’s Northern Areas on 11 June. (Photo: Deon Ferreira)*

Hans pointed to a spate of kidnappings of business owners in the metro as an example of how insecurity could deter investment.

“That prevented business from coming into the city. So, those are things that are spoken at the community level, but have impacts at the geographical level,” he said.

Beyond safety concerns, Hans highlighted the metro’s two ports as a vital, yet largely untapped, economic asset. **DM**