By Gcina Ntsaluba
While the African National Congress celebrated what it called a “decisive victory” in last week’s Ward 10 by-election, opposition politicians and governance watchdogs are highlighting a very different narrative: one of declining public trust and mounting frustration with service delivery failures.
The ANC retained the ward with 49.76% of the vote in the 26 November by-election, but the result represented a sharp 17.58 percentage point drop from the party’s 67.34% showing in the 2021 local government elections – a decline of more than 26%.
The Democratic Alliance surged from 1.48% in 2021 to 26.38% while the Makana Citizens Front fell from 24.31% to 9.52%. Perhaps most remarkably, the DA beat the ANC at the Apostolic Faith Mission Church voting station, the largest of the three polling stations in Ward 10.
Ward 4 DA Councillor Geoff Embling questioned the tone of the ANC’s celebration given the electoral mathematics. “It is surprising that there was such a level of celebration, given that the ANC dropped by 26 percent and was beaten in a voting station in one of its traditional strongholds,” Embling said in a statement.
The DA’s increase represented a growth of more than 1 680% since 2021 – a figure that opposition leaders attribute directly to the collapse of municipal services across Makhanda.
Jay Kruuse, Director of the Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) at Rhodes University, said the result should serve as a wake-up call for the governing party. “Given the dismal performance track record of this ANC-led municipality, it’s unsurprising that an increasing number of voters are signalling their discontent and opting to shift their allegiance to other parties,” Kruuse said.
He emphasised that trust is fundamental to effective democratic governance but that the Makana Municipality has systematically eroded that trust through years of poor performance.
“The ANC in Makana LM has been repeatedly weak on delivering upon constitutional responsibilities to realise human rights, including providing stable water supply and other public services. This serious state of maladministration has eroded public trust,” Kruuse said.
“Furthermore, when public funds can’t be properly accounted for over a number of years – as has been the case in Makana Local Municipality – voters will inevitably take action to signal their discontent with such abuse of office.”
The municipality has faced persistent criticism over its handling of basic services. Makhanda residents have endured chronic water shortages, with the municipality having failed to account for a R2.6 million water pump that went missing after purchase in 2022. The municipality has also failed to spend tens of millions in infrastructure grants, with National Treasury ordering the return of R60.7 million in unspent conditional grants in 2023.
DA Frontier constituency leader Jane Cowley highlighted the visible deterioration across Ward 10 and the broader municipality, noting that streets are riddled with potholes, access to water has become an occasional privilege, cable theft is thriving, and refuse collection is non-existent.
The by-election was held to fill the seat left vacant by the death of ANC councillor Zodwa Cetu in September. Ward 10 encompasses the townships of Fingo Village and Tantyi in the eastern part of Makhanda. Councillor Andile Mbeju won the seat for the ANC but will represent a ward where confidence in the party has visibly waned. The ANC currently holds 13 seats in the 27-member Makana Council. The EFF’s support edged up slightly to 5.28% from 4.24% in 2021.
For Kruuse and other governance monitors, the Ward 10 result is symptomatic of a broader accountability crisis in Makana that transcends party politics. “Trust is an important ingredient of governing effectively in a democracy,” he noted, adding that without meaningful consequences for poor performance and abuse of office, lasting change remains unlikely.
As South Africa approaches the 2026 local government elections, the Ward 10 by-election may offer an early indication of shifting political winds in municipalities where service delivery has collapsed.