The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) has signalled its intention to step in and stabilise the troubled Uthukela District Municipality.
The intended move is contained in a letter written by the Minister of CoGTA, Velenkosini Hlabisa and sent to the MEC of CoGTA in KwaZulu-Natal, Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi.
Hlabisa said he had to intervene after the Northern KZN Chamber of Business, which is anchored in Ladysmith, asked to step in and avert the pending disaster in the IFP-run municipality.
That was shortly after the bank account of the municipality was attached after it failed to pay a service provider as ordered by the Pietermaritzburg High Court.
“To stabilise the municipality and prevent its imminent collapse while restoring confidence among businesses and residents, an urgent collaborative intervention is required. I am requesting your support for an oversight visit I plan to make to the uThukela District Municipality on the 9th March 2026.
“The purpose of this visit is to engage all relevant stakeholders in the district to develop a mitigation plan to restore good governance and effective service delivery,” Hlabisa said in the letter to Buthelezi.
He added that an advance team will be sent to prepare for his visit next week.
“In preparation for the upcoming visit to the Municipality, I am sending an advance Technical Team, led by the Acting Deputy Director-General for Local Government Operations and Support (LGOS), Mr Mpho Mogale, to collaborate with and consolidate with your team of senior officials the work you have already commenced to stabilise the Municipality.
“The details of the technical engagements will be communicated to your Head of Department and to the Municipal Managers of uThukela and the relevant local municipalities, as well as the sector Departments,” he added.
Last week, the Provincial Treasury flagged the district municipality for using the account of the Uthukela Development Agency to pay staff salaries, warning that it is against the law.
