Lekwa Local Municipality is a Category B municipality located in the southwestern region of the Gert Sibande District Municipality in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa.
Overview
| Type of municipality: | Local Municipality (Category B) |
| MIIF classification: | B3 (small towns) |
| Province: | Mpumalanga |
| District: | Gert Sibande |
| Municipal code: | MP305 |
| Seat: | Standerton |
| Number of wards: | 15 |
| Total area: | 4,557 km² (1,759 square miles) |
| Population: | 119,669 (in 2022) |
| Executive mayor: | Sifiso Mngemezulu |
About
Lekwa Local Municipality is geographically situated in the southwestern part of the Gert Sibande District Municipality.
The municipality was established on the 5th of December 2000 after the amalgamation of three former transitional Local Councils, namely; Sakhile, Morgenzon, and Standerton,
Lekwa Local Municipality is named after the Vaal River which is commonly known as Lekwa (the Sesotho name for Vaal River).
The municipality covers an area of 4,557 km² (1,759 square miles) making it the third-smallest local municipality in the Gert Sibande District.
The administrative headquarters/seat of Lekwa Local Municipality is in Standerton.
The municipality is divided into 15 wards.
Lekwa Local Municipality is bordered by:
- Dipaleseng Local Municipality to the west
- Govan Mbeki Local Municipality to the north
- Msukaligwa Local Municipality to the northeast
- Dr Pixley Ka Isaka Seme Local Municipality to the east
- Phumelela Local Municipality in the Thabo Mofutsanyana District in the Free State Province to the south
- Mafube Local Municipality in the Fezile Dabi District in the Free State Province to the south
Lekwa Local municipality is rural in character and lies in the large open plains of the highveld region, which is characterised by tall grass, and it is transversed by the Vaal River, which flows in a western direction.
Due to its location in the southwest of Gert Sibande District Municipality, Lekwa Local municipality serves as the immediate entrance to Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and Free State Provinces.
Standerton serves as the major urban node, whilst Morgenzon located 45 kilometres northeast of Standerton, serves as a satellite node.
Fishing, forestry, and agriculture make up about 30% of the municipality’s economy.
Lekwa’s first two decades were marked by increasing maladministration, which culminated in a collapse in governance and service delivery by 2020. This had negative consequences for its residents and businesses, the environment, and utilities which were not paid for their services.
Population
According to the South African National Census of 2022, Lekwa Local Municipality has a population of 119,669 people, compared to 123,419 in 2016, and 115,662 in 2011.
The municipality has a population growth per annum of 0.33%.
According to the 2022 Census, 24.4% of the population is under the age of 15, 69.8% is between 15 and 64, and 5.9% is over 65.
Racial makeup
According to the 2022 Census, 84.2% of the population in Lekwa Local Municipality describe themselves as Black African, 11.4% as White, 2.9% as Coloured, and 1.2% as Indian/Asian.
Languages
According to the 2022 Census, 66.2% of the population speaks isiZulu as their first language, 13.2% speak Afrikaans, 10.3% speak Sesotho, 3.6% speak English, and 6.7% speak other languages.
Economy
The main economic sectors of Lekwa Local Municipality are agriculture, forestry, fishing, community, social and personal services, and private households.
Municipal council and management
The municipality is under S139 administration, effective from April 2021.
The Lekwa municipal council is comprised of 30 members elected by mixed-member proportional representation.
Fifteen councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in 15 wards, while the remaining 15 are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received.
| Composition of Council (No. of seats by political party) | – ANC: 13 – LCF: 6 – DA: 4 – EFF: 3 – VF PLUS: 3 – ATM: 1 |
| Controlling party | Hung Council |
| Executive Mayor | Sifiso Mngemezulu |
| Speaker | D Msibi |
| Chief Whip | R Motloung |
| Other Council Members | – Makhosazane Raadebe Khumalo – PC Mahlaba (MMC: Corporate Services) – Sipho Amos Majozi (MMC: Technical Services) – Siepati Modise (MMC: Community Services and Safety) – BP Mollo (Mayco) – Jan Thabo Sebiloane (MMC: Planning and Economic Development) |
| Municipal Manager | MJ Lamola |
| Chief Financial Officer | V. Nkhata |
| Senior Management | – Dabampe (Municipal Public Accounts Committee) – M Jiyane (HOD: Technical Service) – L Khoza (HOD: Corporate Services) – LD Legabe (Community Services and LED) – LM Segole (Corporate Services and Finance) – LW Tshweu (Infrastructure Development and Town Planning) |
| Communications Officers | Thobeka Mtshiselwa |
Corruption and mismanagement
In 2008, the municipal manager of Lekwa Local Municipality, Calvin Ngobeni, was accused of maladministration and later suspended with all members of his short-listing panel. They were charged with misconduct for appointing candidates who did not meet minimum criteria. Two top-ranking officials who were not suitably qualified were also suspended.
In 2017, it became clear that the municipality was one of several drowning in debt due to corruption and lack of skills.
Allegations of maladministration and corruption in 2018 cited poor financial discipline, the large deficit, and over-indebtedness with SARS and Eskom, besides unauthorised, irregular, fruitless, and/or wasteful expenditures which were written off as irrecoverable. A VAT review was recommended, and various instances of non-compliance with the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) were noted. As a result a forensic investigation was launched by the Department of Cooperative Governance (DCoG).
In anticipation of the outcome of the Section 106 probe, opposition parties hinted at the precautionary suspension of municipal manager Ms Gugulethu Mhlongo-Ntshangase. Mhlongo-Ntshangase left eMadlangeni Local Municipality (Utrecht) in 2017 amid corruption allegations.
During 2019, the municipality’s main water treatment plant in Standerton was in disrepair and was causing pollution of the upper Vaal River. The municipality was unable to explain why large amounts of money spent on the problem had not yet brought a solution. The stench of sewage was also affecting residents of Meyerville in Standerton, besides Sakhile township and Rooikoppen ext 8.
R83 million was spent on the Rooikoppen sewage problem without any work being done. To assist users downstream, clean water had to be pumped into the Vaal River to dilute its high salt levels, thereby wasting a large quantity of this scarce resource.
Anthony Turton of the Centre for Environmental Management (CEM) at the University of the Free State, noted that a dysfunctional municipality is usually recognized by the fact that it cannot maintain its sewerage works.
At the same time, the town’s basic infrastructure appeared visibly aged, with traffic lights being out of order, and potholes present on most streets. It was also unable to provide other basic services sustainably. It was taken to court by businesses around Standerton for failing to provide clean and sufficient water and electricity. These service interruptions were due to the municipality’s soaring debt to Eskom (R1.1 billion by 2020), and its non-payment for services provided by the Department of Water and Sanitation. Notwithstanding it spent large amounts on private security (guards getting R70,000 to R90,000 a month), events (including meat and catering), cars, accommodation, travelling, and restaurants during 2018 and 2019.
In 2019, six licensing officials in Standerton were arrested for allegedly falsifying vehicle ownership registration on the National Traffic Information System (NaTIS) to enable truck owners to avoid payment of vehicle licensing fees, including penalties and arrears.
Over a dozen homes burned down and three children died in a fire in January 2020 while the town had no access to a fire engine.
A month after the children’s deaths, the municipality ordered two fire engines for R250,000 each, but the contractor who didn’t specialize in fire equipment failed to deliver the first, while the second broke down on its way to Standerton. The municipality took receipt of one new fire engine later in October 2020.
In June 2020, refuse started piling up on the streets as trucks and equipment were allegedly in disrepair. Potholes in roads caused accidents and deaths, and traffic lights had not been repaired for years. Some areas had been without water for months or years, while others received dirty water. Residents and businesses had to forgo an electricity supply for six hours a day, despite 90% of residents using prepaid meters. Businesses had to spend thousands of rands daily to run electricity generators. Its service billing system had become unreliable in terms of pricing and invoicing, and in August 2020 the municipal workers started a strike which exacerbated matters.
Towns/places
Below are the towns/places in Lekwa Local Municipality.
- Morgenzon
- Standerton
Contact details
The contact details of Lekwa Local Municipality are listed in the table below.
| Postal Address: | PO Box 66, Standerton, 2430 |
| Physical Address: | Cnr Mbonani Mayisela and Dr Beyers Naude Street, Standerton |
| Telephone: | 017 712 9600 |
| Fax: | 017 712 6808 |
| Website: | www.lekwalm.gov.za |
