Problems relating to service delivery by Local Government in the North West Province with specific reference to Mafikeng Local Municipality

Abstract

To an ordinary man in the street, local government transformation would be meaningless if the envisaged changes did not bring about a better life with visible improvement in the daily lives of the majority of the citizens. The transformation of local government is aimed at ensuring that all members of the communities have access to the basic services without discrimination. Furthermore, the municipality must ensure development and provision of sustainable services to its communities. The aim of the study was therefore to verify the current situation of Mafikeng local municipality with regard to the provision of services to its communities in line with the above objectives. The majority of community members were not happy with the level of service delivery by the Mafikeng local municipality however, in as far as the removal of refuse and the regularity thereof was concerned, the municipality seemed to be performing well. Only communities in the urban area of Mafikeng municipality were billed to pay rates and taxes and those in the rural areas were not, and that was because no municipal services were delivered to them. The lack of adequate resources was one of the major stumbling blocks that prevented the municipality from providing the different types of municipal services expected by all its communities.