Delays in the Coalition Bill reflect a lack of urgency in tackling local government problems

The Municipal Structures Amendment Bill, also known as the Coalition Bill, has been delayed, exposing government negligence towards local government stability. This has raised concerns about the potential for coalition-driven chaos extending beyond the November elections. Hlumelo Xaba, a research officer at Civic Root Advocacy, notes that the 2016 local government elections led to a surge in coalition governance in metropolitan municipalities, with the ANC losing its outright majority in four of the country’s eight metros.

This resulted in hung councils, which necessitated the formation of coalitions to govern these municipalities. While coalitions were not unprecedented in South Africa’s local government landscape prior to the 2016 elections, the magnitude of the affected metros spurred public discourse on the need for a cohesive framework to regulate coalition governments.

The Municipal Structures Amendment Bill aims to address the crisis facing hung councils by curtailing motions of no confidence against mayors, speakers, and chief whips. However, despite the Bill's initial introduction in 2024, it remains unimplemented, leaving coalition governments in a state of instability. The City of Johannesburg experienced 10 mayoral changes and Nelson Mandela Bay and the City of Tshwane had six since the 2016 elections, causing service delivery backlogs and bottlenecks.

The delayed processing of the bill highlights the government's lack of urgency in addressing local government challenges, which often get neglected and become victims of broader country-wide crises. Moreover, municipalities already face significant financial challenges, and the stalling of the bill risks prolonging instability in hung municipalities beyond the 4 November elections.

Critics argue that the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs' (CoGTA) eagerness for the Bill to be passed before the elections is impractical, given the numerous stages still remaining before the bill can be signed into law by the President. The preoccupation with election campaigns by political parties, which are supposed to scrutinize the bill, further hinders its progress, as it will not receive the necessary attention to impact local governments once enacted.

Additionally, the complex amendments in the bill require a rigorous public participation process to ensure citizens understand the proposed legislation and its potential implications for affected councils. However, the limited time Parliament has before the election makes it impossible to facilitate this process adequately.