The Constitution of South Africa, 1996, requires local government to be democratic and
accountable to local communities. Municipalities are also constitutionally bound to
encourage the involvement of the communities in the affairs of local government. Section
152 of the Constitution of South Africa, 1996, sets out the rights of communities to be
involved in the affairs of local government.Participation is not only about communicating
information and addressing the needs of the community. Participation is also about building
partnerships with the community, being accountable to the community, allowing the
community to take part in policy decisions, capacitating the community to understand their
rights and obligations as citizens, and allowing the community to participate actively in
social, political and economic affairs.
Local government as a sphere of government closest to the peopleplays a critical role in
advancing the participation of the community. Chapter 4 of the Municipal Structures Act of
1998 requires that municipalities should establish ward committees in order to enhance
participatory democracy. Ward committees were therefore established, as community
structures, to play a role in advocating needs, aspirations, potentials and problems of the
community. However, studies appear to be critical on the functionality of ward committees
and argue that most ward committees are not functioning as intended.
The purpose of the study is to establish whether MatlosanaLocal Municipality has created
the environment for active participation through the ward committee system in order to
enhance participatory democracy. Thestudy further investigates whether the ward
committees are functioning as intended and according to what the law requires. The
researcher used a qualitative method to determine how Matlosana Local Municipality uses
the ward committee system to enhance participatory democracy. The investigation revealed
a number of challenges facing the ward committees which hinder their effectiveness.
However, recommendations are recommended to assist the management of the
municipality in making the system more effective. / Thesis (M. Development and Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nwu/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/8289 |
| Date | January 2011 |
| Creators | Thabanchu, Osebelwang Rosy |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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