ANC councillor breaks ranks to demand answers over Madibeng governance

ANC councillor breaks ranks to demand answers over Madibeng governance

For residents of Madibeng, the frustrations are nothing new. Broken systems, delayed services and long-standing questions around how the municipality is run have become part of daily life in Brits and surrounding areas. What is new, however, is an ANC councillor publicly challenging his own party’s leadership at local level.

Ward 15 councillor Lucas Motaung has stepped forward, calling on Madibeng Local Municipality’s leadership to account for years of alleged misgovernance, irregular procurement and questionable administrative decisions that, he says, have damaged public trust and weakened service delivery.

A municipality under a cloud

Madibeng has long carried a reputation for irregular tenders, financial instability and administrative chaos. These issues, often discussed quietly in council corridors and community meetings, have increasingly spilled into the public domain as residents demand answers.

Motaung’s intervention brings those concerns directly to the desk of mayor Douglas Maimane and the municipality’s leadership team. He has formally demanded clarity on procurement processes, staffing decisions and financial controls, particularly where normal procedures may have been bypassed.

Questions around procurement and staffing

At the heart of Motaung’s challenge is the issue of how decisions are being made. He has asked for written explanations where procurement processes were allegedly deviated from, whether competitive bidding rules were followed, and what corrective steps, if any were introduced to prevent repeat irregularities.

He also raised concerns about the mayor assuming responsibilities linked to corporate services, performing administrative duties that would typically fall under human resources. According to Motaung, this blurred line between political leadership and administration raises serious governance red flags.

Decisions beyond council authority

The councillor has further pointed to past decisions taken without proper council approval or outside the delegated powers of officials. One example cited is the appointment of a municipal manager as a consultant after the project management unit was dissolved following widespread irregular expenditure.

For many governance experts, such practices if proven undermine the legal framework that municipalities are meant to operate under and expose councils to further financial and legal risk.

Public reaction and political pressure

Locally, Motaung’s move has sparked conversation, particularly on social media, where residents have welcomed what they see as overdue internal accountability. Others have questioned why it has taken so long for concerns that were widely known to be raised so openly.

While the mayor and senior officials were not available for comment at the time of publication, the councillor’s stance adds pressure on Madibeng’s leadership to respond not just to him, but to a community that has grown weary of unanswered questions.

Whether this moment leads to real reform or becomes another flashpoint in Madibeng’s troubled political history remains to be seen. For now, the silence from leadership is speaking loudly.