The Democratic Alliance in the Mopani District Municipality (MDM) will demand a full investigation, accountability, and firm consequence management following the release of the Auditor-General’s (AG) 2023/2024 Audit Report, which exposes ongoing and chronic governance failures at the district. These failures are translating directly into the collapse of basic water and sanitation services across Mopani, placing communities, businesses, and the district’s economy at growing risk and confirming the district’s inability to fulfil its constitutional responsibilities as a Water Services Authority.
The AG’s report confirms what the Democratic Alliance in Mopani has long warned: persistent governance failure under the African National Congress has crippled the District’s ability to deliver reliable water supply and safe sanitation.
As the designated Water Services Authority for the entire Mopani District — including Ba-Phalaborwa, Greater Tzaneen, Greater Letaba and Maruleng — Mopani carries ultimate responsibility for water and sanitation services. The Auditor-General’s findings show that this responsibility is not being met, with disastrous consequences for communities.
In Phalaborwa, for example, unreliable or absent water supply and raw sewage flowing through streets and properties constitute a violation of basic human rights and are devastating local economic activity. Water insecurity undermines businesses, tourism, and jobs, while untreated sewage poses serious health, environmental and ecological risks — including pollution threatening the Kruger National Park, a vital national and regional asset.
The ‘eau de toilette’ of raw sewage is overpowering when driving through Phalaborwa to the Kruger National Park gate —literally chasing tourists away.
In Hoedspruit, one of Limpopo’s successful developmental areas, the Maruleng Local Municipality was forced to announce a moratorium on further development because of poor planning and an inability of the Mopani District to deliver on bulk water and sanitation augmentation.
The Auditor-General’s report points not to isolated errors, but to systemic institutional failure: weak financial controls, poor asset and revenue management, unreliable performance reporting, and a persistent lack of consequence management.
This audit is not merely technical. It is clear confirmation that poor governance has translated into a service-delivery disaster, with the people of Mopani and its economy paying the price.
Later this year, the people of the Mopani District will have the opportunity in the municipal elections to vote for good, responsible governance and improved service delivery under the Democratic Alliance.