The North West Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) has committed to collaborating with all relevant stakeholders to resolve challenges at the Ditsobotla Local Municipality.
The department made the commitment during a meeting with the Ditsobotla Local Municipality and the Ditsobotla Service Association (DSA) to discuss challenges confronting the municipality.
This follows electricity outages in Lichtenburg and complaints of water shortages for prolonged periods in other areas, leading to protest action by residents.
CoGTA Head of Department (HOD), Dr Ben Bole, convened the meeting on Thursday to address the critical issues and identify lasting solutions to the municipality’s challenges.
Bole said partnerships between the provincial government, municipality and various stakeholders are key to addressing challenges of service delivery across the municipalities in general, particularly in Ditsobotla.
As part of improving good governance and recovering efficient financial systems, Bole said the department will continue its partnership with the Provincial Treasury to intervene and enable Ditsobotla Municipality to function better.
The meeting considered avenues of collaboration between all stakeholders, including the provision of the needed technical expertise to unlock service delivery challenges.
“The department believes collaboration with stakeholders in Ditsobotla may develop a concrete, sustainable and efficient solution to long-standing infrastructure problems faced in the municipality, particularly electricity and water systems.
“We are committed to working together with all relevant stakeholders towards a lasting solution that will transform the service delivery landscape and improve the quality of life for the residents of Ditsobotla,” Bole said.
During the meeting, Ditsobotla Municipal Manager, Olaotse Bojosinyane, urged the residents to remain calm while they resolve the electricity issues.
Bojosinyane reported that the municipality has since managed to restore power to certain parts of Lichtenburg, while some areas are still outstanding and receiving attention.
Bojosinyane said the service provider is still on site and attending to power issues. – SAnews.gov.za
