Gauteng is SA’s service delivery protest capital – report

Having been the venue for no less than 24% of the country’s public demonstrations in this year alone, South Africa’s economic powerhouse, Gauteng, has emerged as the service delivery protest capital.

Gauteng is closely followed by KwaZulu-Natal at 21%, according to a report released yesterday by an independent municipal research body.

Municipal IQ, an organisation specialising in “local government data and intelligence collection” arising from service delivery protests staged against municipalities, has cautioned in its latest Municipal Hotspots Monitor that the country could see an increase in service delivery demonstrations, with 199 nationwide protests having been recorded in 2019 compared to last year’s 237.

While it said no protests were logged in 2006, there were 10 noted in 2004, with the Northern Cape having experienced only 1%.

“The 2019 service delivery protests account for 11% of all such protests measured since 2004,” said Municipal IQ managing director Kevin Allan. “While the end-of-year tally may eclipse last year’s record, there has been a tailing-off of protests since July.”

Gauteng was the frontrunner in protest activity in 2019, followed closely by KwaZulu-Natal, while the Western Cape has outpaced the Eastern Cape.

Karen Heese, economist at Municipal IQ, said it was “important to take into account that the most protest-prone provinces are also the most populated”.

“While 2019’s protest tally is already uncomfortably high and may well reach a new record, this takes place at the same time that protests are being seen around the globe, raising concerns that resonate with South African communities such as inequality and corruption,” said Heese.

Protesters, she said, raised issues that were the responsibility “or perceived responsibility of local government, such as councillor accountability”.

Meanwhile, the human rights group Section 27 budget analyst Daniel McLaren said last week’s report tabled to parliament by the auditor-general (AG) found it “unacceptable” that national and provincial government departments continued to spend public money illegally and wastefully.

“Section 27 notes with mounting frustration the deplorable audit results presented by the AGs office to parliament.

“The report details how R61.4 billion of public funds were spent irregularly in 2018-19.

“We call on the minister of finance, in the medium-term budget policy statement, to implement measures that will help departments to perform and execute their mandates.

“Austerity will only limit access to healthcare and other critical social services further, and put the quality and pace of education, transport, water, energy and other reforms at risk,” said McLaren.

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