By Charmaine Ndlela
Democratic Alliance (DA) Johannesburg mayoral candidate Helen Zille has announced Kingsol Chabalala as the party’s mayoral candidate for Emfuleni in the 2026 local government elections.
Chabalala currently serves on the Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture Portfolio Committee and the Petitions Standing Committee in the Gauteng Legislature.
He was elected as a DA proportional representation councillor in Emfuleni in 2011, having previously worked as the party’s LEAD coordinator in Sedibeng in 2009. In 2014, he was elected to the Gauteng Provincial Legislature.
Emfuleni remains in a near state of collapse, plagued by infrastructure failure, more than R8 billion in debt owed to Eskom, and persistent service delivery breakdowns.
Although the municipality has been placed under administration, governance has not improved.
Accepting the nomination, Chabalala pledged to prioritise skills development and create opportunities for young people.
“We will invest in skills development, support small businesses, and create opportunities for young people to live and innovate like in Midvaal. Because when we empower our people, we empower the entire municipality. We must open fully to investors,” he said.
“We must restore confidence in our economy. We must create a conducive environment where businesses want to invest, grow and create jobs. Our people do not want handouts. Our people want real and sustainable opportunities.”
He also vowed to clamp down on nepotism in hiring practices.
“When 200 job opportunities were created, these jobs did not go to young people from our communities. Qualified young people submitted application forms and waited, but the opportunities never reached them because the system was manipulated before the process even began,” he said.
“Nepotism robs our youth of their dignity. It robs families of income. It robs them of skills and talent.”
Chabalala further promised that under DA governance, service delivery would be restored.
“Water must flow, streets must be clean, roads must be fixed and infrastructure must work. Service delivery is not a favour from government,” he said.
For more than five years, Emfuleni has battled sewage spills and ageing infrastructure.
The municipality has faced ongoing service delivery challenges under the former Gauteng MEC for Human Settlements, Lebogang Maile.
In November 2022, Maile acknowledged that an appointed administrator had failed to rescue the Emfuleni Local Municipality from financial distress and service delivery collapse, leaving residents without reliable access to basic services such as water, electricity and refuse removal.
The municipality’s infrastructure is characterised by sewer spills, deep potholes and washed-out gravel roads.
Across the Vaal region, residents face crumbling roads, severe water pollution caused by raw sewage and a failing waste collection service.
By early 2026, sewage spills, water disruptions and deteriorating road infrastructure remained widespread.
The Gauteng provincial government has conceded that attempts to turn the municipality around have been unsuccessful.
In 2022, the municipality returned R56,581,000 from the Municipal Infrastructure Grant — funds intended for service delivery improvements — to the National Treasury, along with R4.8 million allocated to education that remained unspent.
Maile attributed the underspending to the late appointment of service providers due to supply chain delays and poor contractor performance.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has also acknowledged government shortcomings in addressing the crisis.
“When you go to that municipality, the infrastructure is ageing, water pipes are old, and sewer flows freely. It’s also leadership. I don’t think we’ve provided leadership as well,” said Lesufi.
Lesufi added that Emfuleni’s financial troubles were worsened by the loss of key revenue streams, noting that major companies operating in the area, including ArcelorMittal, have bypassed the municipality and opted to pay Eskom directly for electricity.
In his acceptance speech, Chabalala also called for political change.
“Real change does not come from one leader alone. Real change comes from united communities. Let us choose honesty over corruption, fairness over nepotism, and progress over broken promises,” he said.
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