MAHIKENG MAIL - MAHIKENG: The decisive move to respond to service delivery challenges faced by communities in various municipalities across the North West province, which has led to the appointment of Service Delivery Monitoring and Intervention Acting Chief Director, Dr Auchalie Mothupi, has been hailed as the best move by the provincial government, as scores of North West citizens have benefitted through the much anticipated Thuntsha Lerole Accelerated Service Delivery Reloaded programme.
Since his appointment in July, Dr Mothupi’s rapid response to the government’s promises has in recent months seen a rise in service delivery implementation.
“The work has started. Service delivery testimonials are evident. The Premier is hard at work to deny critics any room for further reproach,” responded Dr Mothupi during an interview this week.
Speaking during the interview, Dr Mothupi remarked, “We have made a breakthrough in our interventions against many challenges and without doubt or contradiction, we can prove successful programmes which profile our earnestness in addressing challenges - including the handover of title deeds, presenting new houses, provision of water, improvement of road infrastructure, payment of service providers on time and much more, to the delight of the people as beneficiaries of these services, under the leadership of Premier Lazarus Mokgosi,” added Dr Mothupi.
As proof of his success story, Dr Mothupi shared a letter from a service provider based in Mofufutso 1 in Atamelang, expressing her gratitude for the timeous intervention into her delayed payment.
Part of the letter reads: “This letter serves to appreciate the manner in which your office (of the Premier) in Ngaka Modiri Molema District, handled my complaint against Tswaing Local Municipality, regarding delayed payment for catering services provided during the Thuntsha Lerole event in Majeng Village.
“Thank you for your office’s dedication to serving the people and for holding municipalities accountable.”
Dr Mothupi also tabled a report of the Phase 4 Thuntsha Lerole Programme in various areas including Ramotshere Moiloa Local Municipality, Tswaing Local Municipality, City of Matlosana, JB Marks Local Municipality, Ditsobotla Local Municipality and Rustenburg Local Municipality, among others.
The Phase 4 Programme has been structured to intensify implementation through targeted commitments, measurable outcomes and strengthened intergovernmental coordination.
The commitments made by Premier Mokgosi, MECs, municipalities and other stakeholders sought to directly respond to pressing community needs, ranging from basic services such as water, housing and roads to socio-economic challenges including unemployment, illegal mining and social development issues.
On interdepartmental coordination gaps, findings were that several commitments relied on multiple stakeholders including Education, Human Settlement and Public Works caused delays and lack of accountability.
Violent community protests in Ngaka Modiri Molema District highlighted risks of non-delivery and the urgency of visible progress and planning versus delivery. Many commitments remain at the planning phases, with slow transition to implementation.
Regarding socio-economic vulnerabilities, it has been discovered that unemployment, illegal mining and crime persisted across districts indicating that service delivery commitments alone may not sufficiently address underlying economic fragility.
Among his recommendations, Dr Mothupi highlighted the need to establish a centralised Premier’s dashboard to track communities across districts, with monthly updates from departments and municipalities; prioritise water, housing, electricity and roads projects with clear timelines and budget allocations and escalate bottlenecks to EXCO as well as creating a joint task team consisting of the departments of Human Settlements, Public Works and COGTA.
