Thesis (PhD. (Public Administration)) --University of Limpopo, 2013 / Developmental local government was introduced in South Africa after the finalisation of the local government transformation in 2000. The notion was however provided for in terms of Chapter seven of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1996. The introduction of the policy framework through the 1998 White Paper on Developmental Local Government provided a platform for the promulgation of the Local Government: Municipal Structures Act 117 of 1998 which was followed by the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act 32 of 2000 to give effect to the notion of developmental local government as envisaged in the Constitution. Realisation of such system of developmental local government required interactions determined through various interactions ranging from structures necessary for establishment of municipalities to systems necessary for the municipalities to be functional. Those structures and systems comprise of a congleromate of agents that derive their way of interactions from various schemas. Those schemas are informed by the mainstream positivist modern scientific public administration discourse that dominates the paradigm of public administration in South Africa. Yet interactions that give effect to developmental local government do not conform to the rational modern scientific prescription that are linear and seek to unveil a unified solution to all problems associated with the realisation of developmental local government. That is where the science of complexity comes to play through its conformity to postmodern ontology of seeking local solutions that are non-linear. It is however necessary to acknowledge that the rational scientific discourse is necessary within developmental local government realisation, it just have limitations that need to be complemented by complexity thinking as local governments together with its establishing structures and systems are by nature complex. It came about through complex interactions that do not always conform to modern scientific analysis. The state of public administration discourse in South Africa is still predominantly rational and adheres to the modern or mainstream public administration. These are exarbated by the praxis of developmental local government itself in terms of its character and its constitutional founding of being a sphere of government that remain ideal than pragmatic. The characteristics of developmental local government themselves cannot be realised within the ambit of a single municipality. The notion of development also provide a conundrum of being translated to developmental which is adjectival to be reduced to a static meaning for proper rational analysis. Being a complex system developmental local government inhabit the charateristics or elements of complexity that cannot be unified to address problems facing municipalities within the country. The complexity of such systems transcend from the initial contextualisation of developmental local government to various persona, multiplicity and pluralism, as well as accountability and responsibility. These create the form of morphogenesis from the inception in the form, structure, function and state of developmental local government. Developmental duties, being Integrated Developmental Plan (IDP), Performance Management, and Community participation remain the ideals that in reality might not be realised unless a complementary view of complexity thinking is considered. The engagement of literature in developmental local government, the state of Public Administration discourse in South Africa, Complex Reflexive Science and the empirical evidence gathered in municipalities found within the Vhembe District municipality area provide a scientic justification to the idea. Developmental local government needs to be dealt with as a complex adaptive system that is informed by the realities of the circumstances of its constituency. That in essence will require creative and innovative practitioners that do require uniform prescripts that need to be applicable to all municipalities irrespective of context,persona, multiplicity and pluralism, as well as dynamics of accountability and responsibility.

The thesis unpacks the transformation of urban planning in the municipalities of the Greater Pretoria region (now Tshwane) during 1992 to 2002, specifically within the context of the government transformation in South Africa and contemporary planning theory. In order to contextualise the transformation of urban planning in the City of Pretoria/Tshwane, the thesis presents an overview of the international trends on urban planning and how these trends (during the 1990s) have informed, shaped and framed the transformation of urban planning in South Africa and in the City of Tshwane. These trends are associated with community participation, strategic planning, sustainable development; the merging social awareness amongst urban planners; and the new integrated relationship between urban planning and management. The narrative part of the thesis specifically unpacks and analyses the nature and impact of the transformed/transforming integrated, developmental and democratic planning system, the positive and negative impacts that this system had on planners, local authority managers and politicians. It also provides a perspective on the conflict and power dilemmas that arose between planners, between planners and managers and between planners and politicians. Within the context of the so-called web of power relations (as described by Foucault), the study specifically explores the impact which the transformation had on the power relations within the local authority planning environment – specifically within the context of the social nexus (as described by Habermas, Healey and others). The thesis provides a local example of the nature and dynamics of power relations within a transforming local authority, with specific emphasis of the planning function. Not only does this study challenge contemporary theories on power relations in planning, but it also provides valuable new insights on the complex and illusive power relations in local authorities. Largely based on the work of Michel Foucault and Jurgen Habermas, the study provides an intriguing reading of the many conflicts and power/rationality struggles and clashes that are being played out on a daily base in municipalities in South Africa. Through the detailed unpacking of a decade of transformation of urban planning in one of South Africa’s six metropolitan municipalities, Mr Coetzee contributes to improving the understanding of the current nature and focus of the urban planning function in the local government sphere. As such it provides invaluable insights to planning theorists and historians, not only in South Africa, but also in other societies experiencing rapid and far-ranging transformation. / Thesis (DPhil (Town and Regional Planning))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Town and Regional Planning / unrestricted