Lifeline or power grab? Nelson Mandela Bay faces high-stakes intervention from national government

In a bid to prevent a complete administrative collapse in Nelson Mandela Bay, the national Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) has deployed a 10-member technical support team for six months.

The team will be responsible for stabilising governance, improving service delivery and submitting two progress reports by March 2026.

The intervention follows persistent municipal failures that have led to poor service delivery, declining public confidence and returned grants.

Cogta invoked section 154 (1) of the Constitution when problems related to institutional stability, infrastructure reliability and financial stability were identified, prompting mayor Babalwa Lobishe to solicit national government support.

The section requires national and provincial governments to support and strengthen municipalities to help them manage their affairs, exercise their powers and perform their functions.

The support comes as the metro awaits feedback from the National Treasury on its threat to withhold the metro’s R546-million in equitable share, because of its failure to address the ballooning unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure (UIFWE).

The team was introduced before council proceedings on Thursday by Cogta deputy minister Namane Masemola, accompanied by Eastern Cape Cogta MEC Zolile Williams.

Presenting the Section 154 (1) support, Masemola said that over the past decade, systemic failures had deepened, resulting in diminished public confidence, constrained economic activity and an inability to fully meet constitutional obligations.

“These failures are now evident in widespread service delivery disruptions, deterioration of essential infrastructure, weakened administrative capacity, recurring audit regressions and escalating UIFWE,” Masemola said.

“The complex and interconnected nature of these challenges requires a coordinated, high-level, whole-of-government response.”

The technical team has been strategically deployed in various units within the metro that need improvement to boost governance and the delivery of services.

According to Masemola’s presentation, the identified units for support include:

• Strategy, senior management support, contract management: Instability in administration;
• Supply chain management: Lack of capacity to draft or finalise service-level agreements;
• Financial management: Weak revenue collection and limited strategic investments;
• Audit and compliance: No strategic capacity to address Auditor-General findings;
• Engineering and infrastructure: Lack of capacity for service delivery and poor grant expenditure; and
• Macro structure adjustment: The council adopted a new macro structure combining several directorates.

Williams said everyone knew about the city’s record-setting UIFWE, and part of their work was to address it.

Read more: Treasury threat to withhold NMB funding puts salaries and services on the line

“We want to prevent the haemorrhaging of funds to the National Treasury, as it has returned almost R1-billion over the years. This is painful to us as the provincial government because we don’t want funds not to be spent in this megacity,” Williams said.

“As provincial government, we’ve been preoccupied for some time in attempting to help the municipality to perform better. Various efforts have been made to try to steer the ship towards thriving and deliver better services to the people of the metro.”

Read more: Postponement of MPAC meeting risks R546m equitable share transfer for Nelson Mandela Bay

Williams said some of their efforts to turn the situation around had fallen short.

“Today, we are attempting to bring support. We are not here to take over the responsibilities of senior officials, but to ensure that where things are not happening, we push for change.”

Williams said the investments they were working hard on required a functional metro to ensure they made a positive impact on the people of the city.

Addressing the media in appreciation of Cogta’s response to the metro’s request for support, Lobishe said she was cognisant of the city’s needs.

“We are mindful of the fact that we should be … running [our] affairs independently, but we made the call [for support] because we want to build capacity.”

Lobishe said she was happy that the areas identified for support were reflected in the terms of reference.

“Moving forward, we should be turning things around, particularly our finances, grant spending and dealing with financial misstatements that constantly are a challenge.”

While some councillors criticised the intervention, calling it politically motivated, the support was welcomed by most.

Among the naysayers was Good party councillor Lawrence Troon, who accused Cogta of using the intervention as a pretext for seizing control of the metro rather than improving governance.

“The presentation here today is actually a vote of no confidence in this current coalition, if we are being honest,” Troon said.

“It really shows to the people of Nelson Mandela Bay that we have a government in place that is not capable of governing.”

Troon said that Cogta’s focus and intervention on Nelson Mandela Bay were inconsistent and politically convenient.

“Why, of all the municipalities, do you come to Nelson Mandela Bay? The Enoch Mgijima Municipality, Makana Municipality and Buffalo City Metro are all falling apart. Yet there is no Section 154 implemented there. Nothing of the sort.

“I am not convinced that this has to do with any good governance. This has to do with a takeover of the municipality. This is the only functioning municipality in the Eastern Cape, and I believe this is an attempt to have a coup and loot the resources of the municipality. From us, we do not support this decision. This is a takeover.”

DA caucus leader Rano Kayser acknowledged the officials’ willingness to appear before council, but still sharply criticised their track record, especially Williams’s reluctance to react to the party’s request for intervention.

“I must say you are the first political leader who respected this council to come and make a presentation on the intervention,” Kayser said. “Other political leaders go into a small room with 10 people and decide on the fate of this municipality, and for that I say thank you.”

Addressing Williams, Kayser continued: “Leader, I respect you more today for your courage and boldness to stand here with a straight face after we have written to you for three consecutive years on the current state of the municipality – and you failed to respond.”

Addressing Cogta deputy minister Masemola, Kayser said:

“Honourable deputy minister, I want to tell you one thing, because I can’t ask it from the MEC any more, because he ignored us.”

Kayser placed the blame for the city’s paralysis on instability in the city manager’s office, which has cycled through acting appointments amid a stalled disciplinary process involving suspended city manager Noxolo Nqwazi.

She was put on precautionary suspension in late 2023 and again in early 2024, pending disciplinary action.

“The departmental hearing has taken more than two years without progress – and that disciplinary hearing is frustrated because of political interest,” Kayser said.

“We were told there is prima facie evidence for this person to be processed. But instead of doing what we should, we want to give a golden handshake. What are you going to do as part of your intervention to ensure stability in the administration, and not be like the Eastern Cape government and the MEC that looks away?”

Timing, intent queried

ACDP councillor Lance Grootboom questioned both the timing and intent of the intervention, arguing that section 154 support was meant to prevent collapse, not respond to it.

“That support comes when there is something you see that is going to collapse, or there is going to be a challenge, or there is financial distress, service delivery distress,” Grootboom said.

“And I must say this has been the concern of the city. The city is experiencing service delivery distress. This is an indictment of the current government — that they are unable to service the residents of Nelson Mandela Bay.”

ANC councillor Bongani Mani stressed that transparency had long been lacking in the administration. He suggested that the 10-member Cogta technical support team did their work transparently.

“I like that there is mention of two reports by March 2026, but it is very vague as to where the reports will go. I would like for those reports to come to council,” Mani said.

“We have had a number of problems in this municipality where reports would be hidden or prohibited from coming to council. There are many liars in this municipality. So please advise the team that they report everything honestly and transparently.”

‘Prolonged deterioration’

Freedom Front Plus councillor Bill Harrington said the intervention was an unavoidable consequence of the metro’s prolonged deterioration.

“When two higher spheres of government have to intervene in order to restore basic functions in a municipality, it indicates that local government is no longer capable of fulfilling its constitutional responsibilities,” Harrington said.

“The condition of the metro’s infrastructure, water systems, finances and administration has deteriorated over time to such an extent that residents have been suffering the consequences for years.

“The visit by Masemola and Williams is therefore not merely a courtesy call, it is a necessary intervention to halt the decline and to begin charting a path toward recovery.

“The metro requires a stable, skilled and accountable administration, one not tied to political loyalty but to service delivery and good governance.” DM