I respectfully request the urgent consideration of the Portfolio Committee regarding longstanding governance, service-delivery, institutional-capacity, infrastructure, accountability and public-safety concerns within Msunduzi Local Municipality, as well as concerns regarding the effectiveness of the provincial and national oversight response.

I initially submitted my request for urgent consideration of intervention in terms of Section 139 on 07 May 2026 and subsequently followed up with the Honourable Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa on 18 August 2026 and 01 September 2026. Despite my latest follow-up, I have received no acknowledgment or substantive response from the Minister’s office.

These matters have been raised through municipal and provincial structures since 2024 and include, among others:

* concerns regarding municipal recruitment processes and institutional capacity;
* unresolved municipal infrastructure and insurance-related matters;
* governance and accountability concerns;
* concerns regarding Ward 34 representation and municipal processes;
* service-delivery and administrative failures;
* environmental, health, structural and public-safety concerns relating to the AfriSam Pietermaritzburg Quarry; and
* the prolonged failure to obtain clear and effective remedial outcomes despite repeated escalation.

KZN COGTA’s own assessment

I attach the formal KZN COGTA response dated 08 June 2026, named “COGTA KZN on Msunduzi.”

This document is particularly important because the provincial Department itself recorded that Msunduzi continued to require sustained provincial support regarding governance, financial recovery, institutional stability, service delivery and organisational capacity.

Most importantly, the Department confirmed that Msunduzi remained classified as an “At Risk” municipality and was subject to ongoing monitoring, support and intervention measures.

However, despite these acknowledgments, the outstanding matters raised by residents remain unresolved, and I have not received a clear account of what specific corrective measures were implemented, who was responsible, what timeframes applied, or what measurable improvement resulted.

I respectfully request that the Committee therefore establish whether the commitments and monitoring measures identified by KZN COGTA were actually implemented and whether they have been effective.

Request for Parliamentary Oversight

I respectfully request that the Committee:

1. Register this matter for parliamentary oversight.
2. Obtain a report from KZN COGTA explaining the current status of Msunduzi, the measures implemented under its Section 154 support and monitoring processes, and the outstanding deficiencies.
3. Establish what became of my Section 139 submission and subsequent correspondence to the National Department.
4. Establish why I have not received a substantive response from the Honourable Minister despite repeated correspondence.
5. Require Msunduzi Municipality and KZN COGTA to account for the unresolved matters raised.
6. Consider whether further parliamentary engagement with Msunduzi, KZN COGTA and the National Department is warranted.

My concern is not limited to the fact that individual complaints remain unresolved. It is whether the constitutional system of municipal accountability, provincial monitoring and support, and national oversight is functioning effectively where a municipality has itself been classified by the provincial government as “At Risk”.

I have consistently attempted to resolve these matters through lawful and constructive channels. I now respectfully seek parliamentary oversight because the prolonged nature of these unresolved issues, together with the absence of a substantive national response, warrants further examination.

I remain available to provide the Committee with the complete documentary record and to appear before the Committee or its officials should further clarification be required.

I would greatly appreciate written acknowledgment of this submission and confirmation of whether the Committee will consider the matter for oversight.