A critique of local governance in the Big 5 False Bay Local Municipality.

Abstract

Up until 1994 the area of local government has been faced with a number of challenges. Communities blame both councillors and municipal officials for poor service delivery and maladministration. Whereas some cite cases of limited resources for the slow pace of delivering the services that are required by the community. Given the limited resources at their disposal, municipalities are bound by the Constitution of the country to satisfy the legitimate expectations of their communities. This relates to the provision of water, sanitation, electricity, health and other services. This requires municipalities to establish and operate on a basis of an effective, efficient and professional governance system. The main objectives of the study were to critique local governance and investigate the challenges facing the Big 5 False Bay Local Municipality; and bring to the fore the service delivery disparities with a view to suggest possible remedial measures for the consideration of the municipality and government. The aim of this research project was to investigate the extent to which the pre-1994 administrative system impacted to the service delivery effort of the Big 5 False Bay Local Municipality. The project also sought to analyse the capacity of the municipality in respect of it being functional governance machinery. Data analysis reveals that there is a positive attitude of the community towards participation in the affairs of the ward and the municipality. This is evident when one looks at the results of the community participation in the drafting or formulation of the IDP and also on the formulation of the ward budget. Most importantly, it is noticeable that the majority of the respondents took it among themselves to effectively participate in the local affairs through voting in the municipal elections and through effective participation when community meetings are called.