Basic function and activities of Kouga Municipality

6          What constitute municipal services and service delivery, including the basic function and activities of Kouga Municipality?

6.1       Basic principles and approaches on service delivery

In order to achieve optimal service delivery the Kouga Municipality have to apply the following compulsory principles:

·        Accessibility - all communities should have access to at least a minimum level of service. This is not a goal, but a constitutional obligation.

·         Affordability - in order to enhance quality of life, municipalities should strive to make services as affordable as possible.

·         Quality - services should be suitable for their purpose, should be timeously provided, should be safe and should be accessible on a continuous basis.

·         Accountability - local governments are founded, inter alia, on the values of a democratic government which includes principles of accountability and responsiveness (see section 1(d) of the Constitution).

·         Sustainability - the provision of services to local communities have to be in terms of section 152(1)(b) of the Constitution in a sustainable manner.

·         Promotion of the new constitutional values - it is not only a legal prerequisite for all municipalities to comply and adhere to the new constitutional values and requirements; it is also an essential recipe for all local governments to achieve optimal sufficiency and support.

·         Establishment of partnerships with community-base organisations and non-government organisations - partnerships with community-based organisations (CBOs), like the Oyster Bay Ratepayers Association and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are inevitable to effective local community involvement in order to stimulate good local governance. Such organisations (like the Oyster Bay Ratepayers Association) have particular skills that could enhance and facilitate new development initiatives and set an effective intermediary in local initiatives.

6.2       Basic administrative capacities to enhance Kouga Municipality’s          development

In order to play and ensure a developmental role effectively and to improve performance in respect of service delivery, Kouga Municipality need to develop at least the following capacities:

·       Become more strategic in their orientation and be open and flexible to new or unforeseen demands.

·       Maximise integrated capacity

·      Become much more community orientated and develop mechanisms to interact with community groups to identify service needs and priorities. Without the capacity to strategise, integrate and to meet face to face with non-municipal groups, the Kouga Municipality is unlikely to be sustainable for the future.

6.3       Legislative requirements regarding municipal services and service provision

Section 152 (1) (a) to (e) of the Constitution states that the Kouga Municipality have to achieve the following objectives:

·       Democratic and accountable government;

·       Provision of services in a sustainable manner;

·       Social and economic development;

·       Safe and healthy environments;

·       Community involvement in local government matters.

Section 73(2)(a) to (e) of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act, 32 of 2000 requires that Municipal services must be:

·     Equitable and accessible;

·     Provided in a manner that is conducive to prudent, economic, efficient and effective use of available resources and the improvement of standards of quality over time;

·     Financially sustainable;

·     Environmentally sustainable;

·     Regularly reviewed with a view to upgrading, extension and improvement.

Section 1 of the of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act provides that ‘basic municipal services’ means a municipal service that is necessary to ensure an acceptable and real quality of life and that, if not provided, would endanger public health or safety or the environment.

Taking the level of service delivery to the residents of Oyster Bay into account, it is doubtful whether the Kouga Municipality complies with the above compulsory statutory provisions

Apart from the basic duties and requirements on local governments in respect of the municipal services, the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act further determines that all municipal councils must add or implement a tariff policy on the levying of fees for municipal services that are provided by the municipality. In terms of section 74(2)(a) to (i) of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act such tariff policy has to comply with the following minimum requirements:

·         Users of municipal services should be treated equitably in the application of tariffs;

·         The amount individual users pay for services should generally be in proportion to their ability for that service;

·         Poor households must have access to at least basic services;

·         The tariff policy must reflect the costs reasonably associate with rendering the service, in providing capital, operating, maintenance, administration and replacement costs, and also in the charges;

·         Provision may be made in appropriate circumstances for a surcharge on the tariff for a particular service;

·         A tariff policy may lawfully differentiate between various category service users as long as such differentiation does not amount to unfair discrimination (see section 74(3) in terms of section 74(2)(a) to (i) Local Government: Municipal Systems Act).

Again it is doubtful whether the Kouga Municipality complies with the above statutory requirements.

Compiled by Prof Dr DJ Lötz (BIur, LLB, LLM, LLD)

Brooklyn Court, Block A, 1st floor, 361 Veale Street, Brooklyn

Borchardt & Hansen Inc