| |
IntroductionThe Constitution and municipalities
Co-operative governance and local government
Different categories of Local Government
Elections for Local Government
The structures of a Municipality
|
The role of municipal councilsThe role of district councilsThe developmental role of local government
Community Participation in local government |
Chapter 7 of the Constitution creates a framework for local governments, making them autonomous (independent) bodies and more independent of national and provincial government than under the previous constitution.
The Municipal Council is the executive and legislative authority of a municipality.. It has the right to govern the local government affairs of its community, subject to national and provincial legislation, as provided for in the Constitution.
The Constitution also requires that the three spheres of government engage with each other in co-operative government. Section 154 specifically requires of national and provincial governments to support and strengthen the capacity of municipalities. Provincial departments of cooperative or local government monitor and support the work of local government.
There are Constitutional limitations to describe the extent to which other spheres of government can intervene when municipalities are unable to exercise their mandate. Section 139 of the Constitution limits the powers that provincial governments have to intervene in the affairs of local government. It says the provincial government can only intervene when it is clear that the local government has not done what it was supposed to do under the law.
The key duties of a municipality are to-
To address the problems with service delivery and finances in local government, the Presidency in 2010 adopted 'Outcome 9' for local government and the Minister and MECs agreed to try and achieve the following by 2014: address 7 critical issues in order to achieve the overarching goal or vision of a responsive, accountable, effective and efficient local government system. The 7 critical issues are as follows:
'Inter-governmental relations' means the relationships between the three spheres of government. The Constitution states, 'the three spheres of government are distinctive, interdependent and interrelated'. Local government is a sphere of government in its own right, and is not an administrative implementing arm of national or provincial government. Although the three spheres of government are autonomous, they exist in a unitary South Africa and they have to work together on decision-making and must co-ordinate budgets, policies and activities.
Implementation of policies and government programmes requires close co-operation between the spheres of government, especially at Executive level. Local government is represented in the National Council of the Provinces although the representatives do not have voting rights. It is also represented in other important institutions like the Financial and Fiscal Commission. The Financial and Fiscal Commission (FFC) is an independent body that is set up under the Constitution to advise government on the portion of revenue that should go to provincial and local government to subsidise services for poor people (the equitable share).
The Division of Revenue Act (DORA) lays down how the total government income (revenue) should be divided and allocated between the spheres of government and within government. Local government is also represented on the Budget Council where the Minister of Finance discusses the proposed budget with provincial and local government.
The South African Local Government Association (SALGA) is the official representative of local government. SALGA has nine provincial offices. Local municipalities join SALGA at provincial level. Executive elections and decisions on policies and programmes happen at provincial or national general meetings. SALGA is also an employers' organisation for all municipal workers, and sits as the employer in the South African Local Government Bargaining Council. SALGA's main source of funding is membership fees payable by municipalities.
The different spheres of government depend on each other for support in project implementation, and regular communication is essential. For example, when a municipality proposes the development of a new housing development in its Spatial Development Framework and Integrated Development Plan, health and education services have to be provided by provincial government. Water services have to be provided by national government, and funding for housing development have to be transferred from national to provincial government from where it goes to the housing developers approved by the municipality. Some spheres of government are responsible for initial funding, others for medium term operational costs, whilst other have to provide capital costs.
In 2005, the Inter-governmental Relations Framework Act was passed to make sure that the principles in Chapter Three of the Constitution on cooperative government are implemented. The Act seeks to set up mechanisms to coordinate the work of all spheres of government in providing services, alleviating poverty and promoting development. The Act also establishes a line of communication that goes from municipalities to the provinces and directly to the Presidency.
The legislative framework includes the Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations Act (1997), the Intergovernmental Relations Framework Act (2005), Public Finance Management Act (1999), the Municipal Finance Management Act (2003), and the annual Division of Revenue Act.
The structure of local government is dealt with in terms of the Municipal Structures Act 117 of 1998 which sets out the categories and types of municipalities and provides for elections and other matters.
In the 2011 Local Government Elections, 4 277 wards were contested in 8 metropolitan councils, 44 districts and 226 local municipalities.
Metropolitan municipalites are set up in large cities with more than 500 000 voter and are dividedinto smaller wards (and in some cases, sub-councils, within which wards are located). Metro municipalities are responsible for delivering all service the Constitution provides for. As at 2011, South Africa has eight metropolitan municipalities, namely:
For more information about Category A municipalities - please visit www.sacities.net and www.info.gov.za/aboutgovt/locgovt/categories.htm
These are areas that fall outside the eight metropolitan areas. Local municipalities also fall in a district and share powers and functions with District Municipalities.
There are 226 local (Category B) municipalities and each municipality is divided into wards. People in each ward are represented by a ward councillor.
District municipalities are made up of a number of local municipalities that fall in one district. With the exception of the 8 metros, the rest of the country is covered by the 44 district municipalities, which are divided into local municipalities and share responsibilities with them.. In 2011, there were 44 District Councils in South Africa. Typically, there are between 4-6 local municipalities that fall under one district council..
The purpose of District Municipalities (Category C) and Local Municipalities (Category B) sharing the responsibility for local government in their areas, is to ensure that all communities, particularly disadvantaged communities, have equal access to resources and services. This arrangement is made in order to help local municipalities who do not have the capacity (finances, facilities, staff or knowledge) to provide services sustainably and adequately to their communities. It also helps to cut the costs of running a municipality by sharing resources with other councils. For detailed maps and population statistics of each district in South Africa, please visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Districts_of_South_Africa (updated 1 June 2011).
Election work differently in the different categories of municipalities.
Half the councillors are elected according to proportional representation, where voters vote for a party (not a specific person). The other half of the councillors are elected as ward councillors by the residents in each ward. Two ballot papers are given to the voter.
Half the councillors are elected according to proportional representation, where voters vote for a party. The other half are elected as ward councillors by the resident in each ward. Voters get these two ballot papers plus a third one for the district council.
Voting for the District Municipality is done on a separate ballot paper at local level. The district council is made up of two types of councillors:
40% of councillors are elected to the district council by all voters in the area according to proportional representation, where voters vote for the party (40% of the district councillors)
60% of councillors are drawn from: elected councillors of local municipalities in the district who are sent by their councils to represent them on the district council.
The following table gives a summary of the type of councils, the areas they cover, how voters living within the council areas can vote, they number of councillors each may have, and how the council is made up of councillors.
| Type of council | Areas | Type of election | Number of councillors | Where the councillors come from |
| A: Metro Council | 8 largest cities in South Africa | 2 ballots: 1 ward vote 1 PR vote for Metro Council | not more than 270 | 50% from ward votes 50% from PR votes |
| B: Local Council | All towns plus surrounding rural areas | 3 ballots: 1 ward note 1 PR vote for Local Council 1 PR vote for District Council | 3-90 | 50% from ward votes 50% from PR votes |
| C: District Council | Area with a number of local municipalities | PR ballot: voting is done at local and DMA level (see above and below) | 3-90 | 40% from Local Council PR vote for District Council 60% from Local Council and DMA representatives |
PR = Proportional representation
PR means proportional representation, where voters vote for a political party not an individual candidate within a party. The ballot paper just shows the political parties. Then the party gets the same share of the number of councillors as the share of total PR votes it got. The party decides which members fill those councillor places. The party can remove a PR councillor at any time, and replace her or him with someone else.
With a ward vote the ballot paper shows the names of candidates and the party they represent (some candidates may be independents). When a ward councillor resigns or is disqualified, a by-election is held to elect a new councillor in their place. A ward councillor who leaves the party they represented in the election must resign.
Each municipality has a council where decisions are made and municipal officials and staff carry out the work of the municipality.
Elected members have legislative powers to pass by-laws and approve policies for their area. By-Laws must not conflict with other National and Provincial legislation. They have to pass a budget for the municipality each year and they have to decide on development plans and service delivery for their municipal areas. This development plan is commonly known as the IDP. (Integrated Development Plan) Councillors meet in committees to develop proposals for council.
The functions of the Mayor and Councillors are set by the Municipal Structures Act.
The mayor is elected by the Municipal council to co-ordinate the work of the Municipality. The mayor is the political head of the Municipal Council and is assisted by the executive committee or the mayoral committee.
There are two systems for the appointment of an executive:
So,'the executive' refers to the executive mayor and the mayoral committee OR the mayor plus the executive.
The executive or mayoral committee is made up of councillors with specific portfolios which match the departments within the municipal administration, for example, health. The executive and the mayor oversee the work of the municipal manager and department heads. The executive proposes policy and presents budget proposals to the whole council. The executive is accountable to the council and has to get approval from the council. Once policies and budgets are approved by council, the executive is responsible for ensuring that the municipal administration implements them. Councillors play a monitoring and oversight role in this process.
The municipal manager is the chief executive officer and is the head of the administration of the council. H/she is responsible for the overall functioning of the administration, for managing the finances and for hiring and disciplining staff. Municipal council officials work for the administration.
A ward committee can be set up for each ward councillor to assist and advise the councillor and improve public participation. Ward committees can be set up in category A and B municipalities where the ward committee model is being used.
Ward committees are mainly advisory committees which can make recommendations on any matter affecting the ward within a Category B or Category A municipality. The municipal council makes the rules that guide the ward committees. The rules say how the members of the ward committee will be appointed, how often ward committee meetings will take place and the circumstances under which a member of a ward committee can be told to leave the committee.
The purpose of a ward committee is to:
A ward committee consists of the councillor who represents the ward, as elected in the local government elections a maximum of 10 people from the ward who are elected by the community they serve. Women should be equally represented on ward committees.
The councillor is the chairperson of the ward committee. Members of the ward committee must participate as volunteers and are not paid for this work.
A ward councillor is directly elected to represent and serve the people in a specific ward. There are usually between 3 000 and 20 000 voters in a ward.
The ward councillor should make sure that the interests of the people in the ward are represented as properly as possible. The ward councillor should be in touch with the issues in the area, understand the key problems and monitor development and service delivery. In committees, caucus and council meetings, the ward councillor should act as a spokesperson for the people in the ward.
The ward councillor is the direct link between the council and the voters. H/she makes sure that voters are consulted and kept informed about council decisions, development and budget plans that affect them.
People can also bring their problems to the ward councillor and h/she should deal with these in an appropriate way, for example, by taking up matters with council officials.
The main role of the ward committee is to make sure that voters are involved in and informed about council decisions that affect their lives. The ward committees should be set up in a way that it can reach most sectors and areas in the ward. The ward committee's main tasks are to communicate and consult with the community in respect of development and service plans. It has no formal powers however to force the council to do anything. The council should provide support, for example, providing publicity for meetings, giving financial support, to enable ward committee to do their work.
Ward councillors and committees must know their communities and the people they represent. They should know:
Ward councillors and committee members can find out more about their communities through general community meetings and direct consultation (going door-to-door and/or conducting a survey).
They should also keep up to date with developments in the council in order to pass this information on to people in their ward.
In the 2008 Local Government Laws Amendment Act, an amendment of section 73 of Act 117 of 1998 (Structures Act) was made to ensure that 'out of pocket' expenses (of ward committee members) must be paid from the budget of the municipality in question. Metro or local councils must develop a policy and determine criteria for calculating the 'out of pocket' expenses and can allocate funds and resources to enable ward committees to perform their functions, exercise their powers and undertake development in their wards within the framework of the law.
The distinction between the roles of elected representatives (councillors), and municipal employees(officials) is very important. Councillors are elected public representatives to serve for a period of five years. Councillors are elected by the people onto a local council, and only keep their positions if they are re-elected.
Officials or employees are appointed by municipal management to specific jobs within the municipal administration, and are like any other employee in a job.. Senior officials, such as the Municipal Manager, Chief Operating Officers, Director of Finance, Director of Housing etc, should have employment contracts subject to annual performance. Their performance agreements must be made public on the websites. Together they make up the management of a municipality
Councillors give political direction and leadership in the municipality, depending on the balance of power between the political parties elected to the council. Councillors and officials determine the policies and direction of the municipality
Officials should have the knowledge and skills on the technical and specialised aspects of municipal affairs. Councillors who don't have this knowledge have to rely on the reports of officials to help them make decisions. Councillors have to weigh up recommendations from officials with community needs and interests.
Once the council has reached a decision then officials are expected to carry these out in the most efficient and cost-effective way.
The main formal contact persons between councillors and the municipal administration are the Executive Mayor and the Municipal Manager. There should also be an informal relationship between each Mayoral or Executive Committee member and the matching head of department within the municipal administration, for example between the councillor responsible for health and the head of the health department.
There should be clear lines of communication and accountability, and separation of roles. A councillor should not interfere in the management or administration of a department, for example by giving direct instructions to municipal employees or interfering with the implementation of a council decision. Officials may not try to unduly influence the council, or provide it with misleading information.
Code of Conduct for Municipal Councillors
The Code of Conduct for Councillors is outlined in Schedule 1 of the Municipal Systems Act of 2000, and an additional code inserted in 2002. The Code of Conduct refers to general conduct, such as performing their functions of office in good faith, honestly and in a transparent matter, at all times acting in the best interest of the municipality, without compromising the credibility and integrity of the municipality.
Councillors must attend each meeting. Leave of absence is granted within the rules and orders of the council. Councillors may be sanctioned for non-attendance. Councillors should also disclose direct or indirect public or private business interest.
Personal gain - a councillor may not use their position or privilege as a councillor, or confidential information obtained as a councillor, for private gain or to improperly benefit another person. They cannot be party to, or beneficiary under a contract for the provision of goods or services to the municipality, or the performance of any work otherwise than as a councillor for the municipality; obtain a financial interest in any business of the municipality, acquire a fee by appearing on behalf of any other persons before the council or a committee.
A councillor should within 60 days of their appointment or election, declare in writing their financial interests that include shares and securities in any company, membership of a close corporation, interest in any trust, directorships, partnerships, pension, interest in property, subsidies, grants and sponsorship by any organisation, gifts above a prescribed amount must be declared. Full-time councillors may not undertake any other paid work.
A councillor may not request, solicit or accept any gift for voting/not voting on any matter; disclose privileged or confidential information; disclose any privileged or confidential information of the council or committee to any unauthorised person.
Other than provided by law, may not interfere in the management or administration of any department of the council unless mandated by council, give or purport to give any instruction to any employee of the council except when authorised to do so, encourage or participate in conduct that would cause or contribute to maladministration within the council.
A councillor may not use, take, acquire or benefit from any property or asset owned, controlled or managed by the municipality to which that councillor has no right.
A councillor may not be in arrears to the Municipality for rates and service charges for a period longer than 3 months.”
For more information, please see www.info.gov.za/view/DownloadFileAction?id=68199
A code of conduct for municipal officials has not been prescribed by law as with the code of conduct for councillors. However, in February 2010, Parliament began to work on a Proposal to revise Code of Conduct for public officials.
In summary, the Mayor and executive or mayoral committee are responsible for making policy and monitoring outcomes, while the Municipal Manager is responsible for managing the administration to implement policy and achieve the specified outcomes.
The Municipal Structures Act sets out codes of conduct for councillors (these codes apply equally to traditional leaders).
Most councils follow the same pattern of decision-making as follows:
There are many different ways that councillors (and the public) can raise issues with the council. These are:
Petitions
Councillors or individuals are allowed to send petitions to the municipal manager. The purpose of the petition is to inform the council and the administration that a large number of people want something to be done, for example, if a law is not being applied properly.
Petitions are handed to the council secretary at the council meeting. The petition is usually referred to the management committee that will then report to council. The officials send the petition around to the relevant departments who will make recommendations to the relevant portfolio or standing committees.
These committees then make recommendations to the executive. The executive discuss the petition and then make recommendations to the council.
The councillor or group that has sent the petition must follow its progress by keeping in contact with the relevant departments.
Questions to Council
Questions can be used to monitor council officials and get reliable information about council policies and programmes. Questions can be sent in writing or asked during a meeting. Written questions must be submitted 10 days before the council meeting that the officials have time to prepare the answers.
Answers will often be given at the meetings themselves. The executive chairperson can often answer a question verbally or provide a reply in writing. Any councillor can ask a question about executive recommendations or decisions and any executive member can make immediate verbal replies.
Requests
Collective and individual requests are the easiest way to get information or to bring problems to the attention of officials. When councillors table requests on behalf of their constituency, this should be done in a manner that respects protocol. If by-laws exist to address a request, then a positive response may be done quickly.
For example, if someone has a blocked water drain you can go to the relevant official and make a request to get it fixed. But if you want something new in your ward and there is no policy on this, then additional work and liaison and communication with other government departments may be necessary.
The roles played by municipal councils are to:
In playing their role, municipal councils have a duty to:
Municipalities are responsible for the following functions in terms of Part B of Schedule 4 and Part B of Schedule 5 of the Constitution:
Municipal councils have executive and legislative powers for these functions. In other words, they have the right to make laws and decisions about the affairs of residents and communities in their areas and to claim service fees from residents
District councils have to see to the development of their areas as a whole. They must build the capacity of local municipalities in their areas so that the local councils can carry out their functions. District Councils also have to make sure those resources and services are distributed fairly amongst the local municipalities.
These are some of the functions and powers of District Councils:
National or provincial government can also delegate other functions to municipalities, though these must be within the limits of legislative provisions to do so.
Local governments must play a developmental role in their communities. This means working with communities (leaders and organisations) to find sustainable ways to meet the social, economic and material needs of people and to improve the quality of their lives. In particular, local governments should target people who are most often marginalised or excluded, such as women, disabled people and very poor people.
Develop communities and provide for economic growth in the area
Municipalities must be serious about their responsibility to provide services to meet the basic needs of the poor in the most cost-effective and affordable way. They should do this in the following ways:
Co-ordinate the different sectors involved in development of the area
There are many different sectors involved in the development of an area, for example, national and provincial departments are all involved in some way in establishing and maintaining health clinics, schools, etc. There are also parastatals (partly government partly private) like Eskom and Spoornet, trade unions, businesses, non-government organisations that play a role in developing an area. The municipality must take responsibility for co-ordinating all their activities for the benefit of the whole community.
Encourage participation in decision-making processes
Local councillors should make sure that the broader community is involved in the decision-making processes. They can do this through the ward committees and community consultation.People around the world are always thinking of new and better ways to build communities. For example, there are new ideas on how to create jobs, protect the environment, save water, and do away with poverty, and so on. Local government leaders need to know about these changes and build these into their policies.
Ask yourself these questions to see whether your government is playing a developmental role. Do they?:
Integrated Development Planning is an approach to planning that involves the whole municipality and its citizens in finding the best solutions to achieve effective long-term development. An IDP is a broad plan for an area that gives an overall framework for development. It looks at existing conditions and facilities, at the problems and needs and finally at the resources available for development. There are six main reasons why a municipality should have an IDP. These are to:
All municipalities have to draw up an IDP in consultation with local forums and stakeholders. In other words, the public must participate fully in the process. The final IDP document has to be approved by the council. The plan must show:
The municipality (the mayor and Exco who pass on responsibility to the municipal manager) is responsible for co-ordinating the IDP and must draw in other stakeholders in the area who can help and/or benefit from development in the area. All municipal planning must take place using the IDP as a guide and the annual council budget should be based on the IDP.
Municipalities decide on LED strategies and the process of arriving at a LED strategy must be part of the Integrated Development Planning (IDP) process. Local economic development must aim to create jobs by making the local economy grow. This means that more businesses and factories should be started in the municipality. As part of the IDP, people in a municipality must come together to reach agreement and take decisions to make the economy grow and create income opportunities for more people, especially the poor.
The LED strategies should be based on the overall vision outlined in the IDP and should take into account the result of eth analysis phase. It should also look at things like integrating our residential and work areas, building development corridors between areas and supporting the economy with good public transport.
Municipalities have the responsibility to make sure that all citizens are provided with services to satisfy their basic needs. The most important services the municipality must provide are:
Municipalities provide services to people by using their own resources - finances, equipment and employees. People have to pay a certain rate to the municipality for providing these services.
The government has developed a policy which looks at providing free basic levels of municipal services for the poor. The policy says that water and electricity are priorities.
Municipalities can 'outsource' to other people to provide these services. This means, it can choose to hire someone else, an NGO, CBO or private company, to deliver the service but the municipality is still responsible for choosing the service provider and for making sure that they deliver the service properly. When a municipality 'outsources' to someone else this is called a Municipal Service partnership (MSP). This is not the same as privatisation, but must be done carefully..
So, an MSP is an agreement between a municipality and a service provider. Under this agreement, a service provider agrees to provide a particular municipal service on behalf of the municipality within a certain time frame and budget. The service provider can provide a service to the whole community or part of it. For example it may be responsible for collecting rubbish in a certain part of the community.
Work opportunities, such as Expanded Public Works Programmes (Phase II) are being rolled out, though these address people’s needs off a low base. Recent government policy initiatives – to address the chronic and extensive lack of opportunity to work by youth, skills transfer initiatives, bursaries to complete tertiary studies have been very soon.
One of the most important duties of a municipal council is to manage its funds effectively. This means -
Municipalities must prepare budgets for each financial year (which runs from 1 July of each year to 30 June of the next year). Council must approve these budgets before the new financial year begins, after proper planning and consultation with ward committees and other stakeholder groups in the area. For example, the budget for the financial year beginning in July 2012 must be approved before the end of June 2012. However, Council must prepare a draft budget a few months before this to allow for proper consultation to take place. Government is discussing how to align the financial year of national and provincial government (March-February) with that of local lgovernment, so there may be changes soon.
Ward committees have the right and duty to ask questions and make recommendations to the council on the best ways to generate income, keep costs down, prevent corruption and protect the assets of the municipality.
Approving the budget is one of the most important functions of the ward councillor. The ward councillor should not approve the budget until there has been proper consultation with the ward committee and other stakeholders. So, ward committees play an important role in the process and they should look carefully at all the parts of the budget that will affect the people in their area. All members of the community have the right to observe the special council meeting when the budget is debated and voted on.
Ward committees should also be given regular feedback on the 'cash flow' of the municipality. 'Cash flow' means the movement of money into and out of the municipality's bank account.
If too much money is spent and not enough money is raised then the municipality will eventually go bankrupt. Ward committees have a right to ask questions about how well the 'cash flow' is being planned, monitored and followed up by the treasurer and executive or mayoral committee. Ward committee members can also play a positive role in the 'cash flow' of the municipality by -
Municipal councils must be accountable to their local communities. In addition, the Constitution says is important that communities participate in local government. The most important way that communities can participate in local government is through the structure of the ward committee.
There are three Acts which can be used to enforce accountability of local councillors and the local council. These are:
There are different ways that individuals can participate in local government and influence decision-making. These are covered in detail in Chapter 3: Democracy and Public Participation.
© This material may not be used for profit without permission from ETU