The African National Congress (ANC) in KwaZulu-Natal has accused the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) of colluding with the National Freedom Party (NFP) to “undermine” ANC leaders, alleging that their actions are destabilising political arrangements, unity, and governance in the province.

The ANC claims that the IFP MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA), Thulasizwe Buthelezi, has been central to an alleged effort to instigate a motion of no confidence against ANC mayor of the uMkhanyakude District Municipality, Siphile Mdaka – a move the party has described as an “abuse of office.”

“This follows the ousting of the ANC as the leader of the UMkhanyakude District Municipality where the IFP directed the skulduggery behind the scenes to achieve its selfish political ends.

The ousting of the ANC had nothing to do with the performance of the municipality, but it is clear that it was a brazen heist which had failed on previous occasions,” said ANC KZN spokesperson Fanle Sibisi.

Mdaka was replaced by the IFP’s Comfort Khumalo, while the NFP’s Zodwa Mtshali retained her position as deputy mayor.

In July, the ANC opposed plans to place the municipality under administration amid allegations of maladministration, poor financial management, and corruption. At the time, the party said that such measures should be used only as a last resort, insisting that the challenges facing the municipality could still be remedied without drastic action — particularly the removal of Mdaka.

Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke had asked Buthelezi to intervene in the persistent governance failures, including the municipality’s inability to implement a credit and debt collection policy. Maluleke warned that continued irregularities could inflict long-term damage, saying the municipality risked “devastating” financial losses.

“The failure of the accounting officer to take appropriate action to address the material irregularity led to a decision by the AGSA’s material irregular committee to approve reporting in the audit report of the municipality… with recommendations on the steps the accounting officer should take within a stipulated period,” Maluleke wrote.

Despite the Auditor-General’s findings, the ANC’s provincial leadership maintains that Mdaka’s removal is unjustified and not in the best interests of residents. Describing the move as a “betrayal,” the party said it would consult both provincial and national structures before deciding on its next course of action.

“The ANC will not allow its integrity to be compromised or its communities destabilised by those who claim unity in public, but practice sabotage in private. If the IFP has abandoned the spirit of unity, it must have the courage to publicly declare so rather than clandestinely pursuing cheap and deceitful manoeuvres,” Sibisi said.

IFP spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa but was unavailable for comment at the time of publishing.

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Parliament’s committees on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) and the Auditor-General will embark on a week-long oversight visit to the Eastern Cape from next week Monday to Friday, targeting municipalities with persistent governance and financial failures.

“This will be the fourth province where the joint oversight delegation from Parliament will collaborate with the provincial legislature and engage with municipalities that have poor audit outcomes and governance challenges,” the committees said on Thursday.

The oversight comes after years of concern about service delivery failures in Eastern Cape municipalities. Many of the province’s municipalities, including two metros – Nelson Mandela Bay and Buffalo City – have long been plagued by weak financial management, poor infrastructure maintenance, and political instability.

Municipalities such as Makana in Makhanda have faced legal battles over water supply failures, while Enoch Mgijima became infamous for the multimillion-rand failed Lesseyton Sports Field project.

The committees said their joint oversight strategy places a stronger emphasis on consequence management and accountability from provincial and municipal leadership following “continued regression in audit outcomes across several municipalities,” despite previous interventions.

The Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane, Cogta MEC Zolile Williams and Finance MEC Mlungisi Mvoko will be required to present to Parliament’s delegation.

“These members of the provincial executive are expected to report on the state of municipalities in the province, including irregularities, consequence management, corrective steps, and future preventative measures,” the committees added.

Nineteen municipalities will appear before the delegation, including Makana, Sundays River Valley, and the two metros.

According to Parliament, municipalities must account for persistent challenges, including disclaimers and poor financial statements.

The committees also flagged environmental degradation linked to the neglect of landfill sites and wastewater treatment plants, warning that these failures “are causing pollution and affecting nearby communities”.

The committees also raised alarm over poor accountability.

“Another issue flagged was weak oversight and accountability due to limited consequence management for irregular, wasteful and unauthorised expenditure,” they said.

Nine municipalities face going-concern uncertainties, while the metros remain burdened by poor revenue collection and debt.

Enoch Mgijima Local Municipality will also have to explain its failure to act on findings from oversight bodies, including the Public Protector, who ruled against the Lesseyton Sports Field project.

The visit will conclude in Mthatha on Friday, where MPs will meet traditional leaders and conduct site visits in disaster-hit areas.

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Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa is set to formally announce the disbursement of the Municipal Disaster Response and the Disaster Recovery Grant to provinces and municipalities across the country on Monday.

The allocations will support rapid relief and recovery measures in communities impacted by the latest weather disasters.

The intervention comes in as a result of a series of disruptive incidents which are formally recognised and declared as national disasters, in line with Section 23(3) of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (Act No.57 of 2002). They include the recent destructive floods in the Eastern Cape.

The money is being released under Section 25(3)(a) of the Division Revenue Act, 2023 (Act No.5 of 2023), as amended by the Division of Revenue Amendment Act, 2023(Act No. 24 of 2023).

“The announcement forms part of government’s ongoing efforts to ensure an adequate and timely response to the devastating weather events of April 2025, which significantly affected several provinces, most notably the Eastern Cape.

“In addition to addressing the damage caused by these events, the grants will support broader recovery interventions aimed at restoring essential services and the dignity of affected communities,” the department said in a statement.

The Eastern Cape was declared a national disaster zone following the widespread destruction, which resulted in the deaths of 102 people.

The department said that to ensure the integrity and effectiveness of the funding, it would implement strict accountability mechanisms to guarantee that the allocated resources were used solely for their intended purposes.

“Monitoring and reporting frameworks will be enforced in collaboration with relevant stakeholders to uphold transparency and good governance,” it said.

The department said the intervention reflected the government’s commitment to moving from policy deliberation to decisive action and to building a resilient, responsive, and inclusive system of local governance that places the needs of communities at the centre of development.

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The death toll from the devastating floods that struck the Eastern Cape has risen to 78, with dozens still missing as rescue operations continue across affected areas.

The torrential rains that began earlier this week have left a trail of destruction, including the death of 13 school children who died after a minibus taxi was swept off the R61 bridge near Mthatha.

While some bodies have since been recovered, search teams are still combing riverbanks and fields for at least four missing learners.

Gift of the Givers and local search-and-rescue teams are now working with emergency personnel deployed from Gqeberha, East London and the Chris Hani District.

Heavily affected areas such as Decoligny village and Joe Slovo township remain under intensive surveillance as weather warnings persist for continued rain, strong winds and plummeting temperatures.

Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni addressed the media on Thursday, following the Cabinet meeting, announcing national coordination efforts to support provincial disaster management teams.

“Cabinet extends its condolences to the families of those who lost their lives during flooding across various areas in the Eastern Cape. Government is coordinating rescue and support operations through both the national and provincial disaster management centres,” Ntshavheni said.

She urged the public to remain alert, warning of more inclement weather to come.

“Cabinet cautions everyone to be vigilant over the next few days due to the expected extreme weather conditions. This could include drops in temperature, snowfall, strong winds and heavy rain,” she said.

President Cyril Ramaphosa is scheduled to visit the flood-stricken Mthatha region on Friday, following those of Cooperative Governance Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa and Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube, who both joined provincial leaders in surveying the damage.

Hlabisa confirmed that 57 deaths had been recorded from three main hotspots, with over 2000 people displaced.

He stressed the urgency of declaring the Eastern Cape a disaster area to unlock emergency funding and fast-track relief.

“Fifty-seven is not just a figure, these are human beings—breadwinners, children, parents. We must respond with urgency and compassion,” Hlabisa said.

The disaster has significantly disrupted the education sector.

According to Gwarube, 6038 learners have been displaced, and 58 schools have reported infrastructure damage.

“Many of these children were preparing for mid-year exams. We’ve postponed the two papers that were scheduled, but contingency plans must be finalised quickly. We cannot let this disaster derail their education completely,” Gwarube said.

She also highlighted the emotional toll the disaster has had on the survivors, especially young children.

“One child clung to a tree while her friend was swept away. These are scars that won’t heal quickly. Psychosocial support for survivors must be prioritised,” she said.

Premier Oscar Mabuyane called the situation “terrible,” noting that floodwaters reached up to four meters high in some areas.

He admitted that initial rescue efforts were hampered due to limited resources.

Basic services have also collapsed in several areas, with power outages and disrupted water supply compounding the crisis.

The national and provincial government is working urgently to restore electricity, water and road access.

The African National Congress extended its condolences to communities affected by the floods, acknowledging the grief of those who have lost loved ones, homes and livelihoods.

ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri praised emergency responders and volunteers for their swift actions.

“We commend the efforts of emergency personnel, disaster management teams and community volunteers. Their immediate interventions have undoubtedly saved lives and brought hope to many amid great difficulty,” she said.

The spokesperson urged all spheres of government to accelerate humanitarian aid, including temporary shelter, food, medical assistance and the restoration of essential services.

She also called for long-term investment in climate-resilient infrastructure and disaster preparedness in light of increasingly severe weather due to climate change.

Authorities have urged citizens to follow local weather alerts, avoid crossing flooded roads and postpone travel if possible.

Families have started gathering at the local mortuary in Mthatha to identify their loved ones. 

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The Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) has called for a detailed municipality-by-municipality report to enable proper analysis and oversight of the District Development Model (DDM).

Committee members raised concerns about the slow progress and lack of clarity in implementing the District Development Model (DDM), six years after its launch by the President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2019.

The department briefed the committee on pilot evaluations in eThekwini, OR Tambo (Eastern Cape), and Waterberg (Limpopo), but members felt the presentation lacked depth.

They called for a detailed, municipality-by-municipality breakdown to better assess implementation milestones and achievements.

Despite being presented as a national model, only pilot sites have received focused attention.

Committee Chairperson Zweli Mkhize pointed to confusion around the term “pilot” and the lack of clarity on how these sites differ from others already working within the DDM framework.

“If the DDM is a national model, we need clarity on what differentiates a pilot site from a fully implemented one.
We must be able to track progress meaningfully across all districts and metros—not just a select few,” Mkhize said.

The committee urged the department to improve its communication to ensure broader understanding and buy-in from stakeholders and the public. Feedback from pilot sites revealed that many officials still see the DDM as an add-on, rather than a reform of existing systems.

The committee called for transparency, accountability, and consistent national rollout to properly assess the model’s impact across all 52 districts and metros.

Mkhize stressed that the DDM’s goal is to revolutionise governance and service delivery through integration—but warned that confusion and bureaucracy are undermining this intent.

“There’s a pressing need to separate political messaging from the reality of implementation.
Parliament must know where we stand—what’s been achieved, what hasn’t. The DDM’s value must not be buried in structures and jargon. Success depends on practical, coordinated action, not added bureaucracy.”

The committee noted that, according to the department’s own data, only half of the DDM’s goals had been met. Pilots reportedly struggled with forming partnerships and managing change, raising concerns about scaling the model to all 257 municipalities.

In response, department officials acknowledged misunderstandings and committed to submitting a comprehensive report covering all 52 implementation sites.

Officials reaffirmed that the DDM is not a replacement for existing frameworks like the National Development Plan or Integrated Development Plans, but rather a unifying tool to align planning, budgeting, and monitoring into a single ‘One Plan.’

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