The troubled King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality (KSD) in South Africa is set to get a new mayor, with several candidates vying for the top job. The municipality, which includes Mthatha, has been facing mounting service delivery challenges. Candidates from the ANC and opposition parties have outlined their plans to improve infrastructure, restore confidence and address residents' concerns. The mayoral hopefuls have made various promises to turn around the municipality.
ANC mayoral hopeful Nomthandazo Mdledle has pledged to improve public safety, stimulate economic development and ensure the municipality's finances are sustainable. Mdledle, a former teacher, has served as the OR Tambo District Municipality's budget and treasury portfolio head since the 2021 local elections. She admitted that she was apprehensive about taking over KSD, but her faith and experience have prepared her for the challenge. Mdledle's plans include improving public safety, repairing infrastructure and accelerating service delivery.
Mdledle's priorities include ensuring that streets are properly lit to improve safety, particularly for women, while addressing deteriorating roads and other municipal infrastructure. She also plans to prioritise local economic development and implement programmes aimed at tackling poverty, inequality and unemployment. Mdledle said the municipality needed to restore confidence in its administration while ensuring its finances remained sustainable. Improving people's access to a reliable supply of water, maintaining roads and stormwater infrastructure, strengthening electricity distribution and combating cable theft are also priorities.
Other mayoral hopefuls have also outlined their plans for KSD. Phikolomzi Adonisi from Phakama Eastern Cape said his priorities would include combating crime, addressing illegal immigration and reducing the cost of municipal services. Adonisi claimed that undocumented foreign nationals were swamping several sectors of Mthatha's economy. He also promised to tackle cable theft, review municipal rates and electricity charges and ensure that residents were billed accurately for services.
Zukile Luyenge, a former ANC MP and Isanco president, is running for mayor under the banner of the African Movement Congress. He said he would prioritise reducing the municipality's wage bill and reviewing its rates. Luyenge believes that too much of the municipal budget is being spent on salaries and administration at the expense of service delivery. He plans to review the municipality's administrative structure to ensure more resources are directed towards improving services.
The other mayoral hopefuls include ANC councillor Zoliswa Madyibi, former municipal public accounts committee chair Pasika Nontshiza of the Land Party, and the EFF's Ncedo Kolanisi. Attempts to obtain comment from Madyibi were unsuccessful. The candidates will need to work to restore confidence in the municipality's administration and improve service delivery, particularly in Mthatha, where infrastructure problems continue to affect communities.
The municipality's financial and service delivery challenges are significant, but the mayoral hopefuls are confident that they can make a difference. Mdledle said that as a staunch Christian, she believes that faith must always defeat fear. She is among several candidates vying for the mayoral chain, and the residents of KSD will have to decide who they trust to turn around the troubled municipality.
Key points
- ANC mayoral hopeful Nomthandazo Mdledle has pledged to improve public safety, stimulate economic development and ensure the municipality's finances are sustainable.
- Phakama Eastern Cape's Phikolomzi Adonisi plans to prioritise combating crime, addressing illegal immigration and reducing the cost of municipal services.
- African Movement Congress's Zukile Luyenge aims to reduce the municipality's wage bill and review its rates to address service delivery challenges.
