AfriForum demands answers about Free State government’s failure to implement Ngwathe court order
AfriForum demands urgent answers from MaQueen Letsoha-Mathae, Premier of the Free State, regarding the provincial government’s failure to implement a court order to place the Ngwathe Local Municipality under administration. The civil rights organisation set out its request for answers in a letter to the Premier yesterday after it emerged that the municipal council – which should have already been dissolved in terms of a court order – had adopted a budget for the new financial year last week.
The Free State High Court in Bloemfontein already ruled on 20 June 2025 that the Ngwathe Local Municipality had failed to fulfil its constitutional, legal and administrative obligations towards residents. The court ordered the provincial government to intervene under Section 139(5) of the Constitution, implement a recovery plan, dissolve the municipal council, appoint an administrator and prepare and approve a temporary budget.
The court order is final and enforceable after the Constitutional Court dismissed the Municipality’s last attempt to appeal the ruling on 2 June this year.
AfriForum is concerned, however, that the provincial government has not yet taken the necessary steps to implement this order. Furthermore, there is no indication that the Municipality has been placed under administration or that an administrator has been appointed.
“According to media reports, the premier has indicated that the court order will be implemented without delay. Yet it appears as if the municipal council is continuing to make decisions as if no court order existed. This raises serious questions about the provincial government’s compliance with its constitutional obligations and the rule of law,” says Alta Pretorius, District Coordinator for AfriForum’s Mooi River region.
In its letter to the Premier, AfriForum requests that written confirmation be provided by 26 June of the steps that have already been taken to implement the court order; when the intervention will be officially announced; when the municipal council will be dissolved and an administrator will be appointed; and how the province intends to give full effect to the court order.
AfriForum emphasises that the residents of the Ngwathe Municipality have been suffering for years due to poor service delivery, infrastructure decay and management failures. The organisation will not hesitate to take further legal action if the provincial government fails to comply with the court order.
“No government institution is above the law. The court has given clear instructions on what needs to happen to address the crisis in this municipality. The Free State government must now show that it respects the court’s authority and is prepared to act in the interests of residents,” says Schalk Burger, Chairperson of AfriForum’s Parys branch.
