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Govan Mbeki Local Municipality

Coordinates: 26°33′S 29°10′E / 26.550°S 29.167°E / -26.550; 29.167
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Govan Mbeki
Official seal of Govan Mbeki
Location in Mpumalanga
Location in Mpumalanga
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceMpumalanga
DistrictGert Sibande
SeatSecunda
Wards32
Government
 • TypeMunicipal council
 • Executive MayorNB Zuma[1]
Area
 • Total2,955 km2 (1,141 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[3]
 • Total294,538
 • Density100/km2 (260/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
 • Black African80.5%
 • Coloured1.5%
 • Indian/Asian1.5%
 • White16.0%
First languages (2011)
 • Zulu47.4%
 • Afrikaans15.9%
 • Southern Ndebele7.7%
 • Sotho6.0%
 • Other23%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal codeMP307

Govan Mbeki Municipality (Zulu: UMasipala iGovan Mbeki; Afrikaans: Govan Mbeki Munisipaliteit), formerly the Highveld East Local Municipality, is a local municipality within the Gert Sibande District Municipality, in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. Secunda is the seat of the municipality.

Main places

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The 2001 census divided the municipality into the following main places:[4]

Place Code Area (km2) Population Most spoken language
Bethal 80701 101.50 8,512 Afrikaans
Brendan Village 80702 0.66 277 Afrikaans
Charl Cilliers 80703 1.58 210 Zulu
Eendrag 80704 1.85 293 Afrikaans
Embalenhle 80705 13.63 91,751 Zulu
eMzinoni 80706 5.19 31,012 Zulu
Evander 80707 40.15 8,212 Afrikaans
Highveld Ridge Mines 80709 71.84 325 Zulu
Kinross 80710 3.99 4,906 English
Leandra 80711 1.59 9 Zulu
Lebogang 80712 3.88 19,396 Zulu
Leslie 80713 2.08 761 Afrikaans
Leslie Gold Mines 80714 0.19 0 -
Mandela Section 80715 0.23 1,083 Xhosa
Milan Park 80716 1.74 4,760 Zulu
Secunda 80717 150.71 26,125 Afrikaans
Sorento Park 80718 0.95 12 Afrikaans/Zulu
Trichardt 80719 1.53 1,973 Afrikaans
Remainder of the municipality 80708 2,555.68 22,132 Zulu

Politics

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The municipal council consists of sixty-three members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Thirty-two councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in thirty-two wards, while the remaining thirty-one are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 1 November 2021 the African National Congress (ANC) lost its majority, but remained the largest party, winning twenty-six seats. The following table shows the results of the election.[5]

PartyWardListTotal
seats
Votes%SeatsVotes%Seats
African National Congress22,28740.312423,65241.83226
Democratic Alliance14,70726.60715,00726.541017
Economic Freedom Fighters10,83619.60011,39720.151313
Freedom Front Plus2,5384.5902,5364.4833
Azania Resident Party1,1542.0911,1742.0812
African Transformation Movement7481.3507151.2611
Independent candidates1,4502.6200
Inkatha Freedom Party4330.7807061.2511
7 other parties1,1352.0501,3602.4100
Total55,288100.003256,547100.003163
Valid votes55,28898.2156,54798.37
Invalid/blank votes1,0101.799361.63
Total votes56,298100.0057,483100.00
Registered voters/turnout141,05839.91141,05840.75

Corruption

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After allegations of endemic corruption a forensic investigation was launched by the Department of Cooperative Governance (DCoG). The Section 106 forensic investigation report released in 2020 revealed extensive political interference in its administration.[6] The report revealed non-implementation of council resolutions, abuse of municipal property and assets, advertisement of tenders without following legislation and awarding of bursaries without following procedures. Senior positions were occupied by politically affiliated persons who lacked the minimum required qualifications or even a matric certificate. In addition several companies that got preferential treatment had senior politicians on their payroll. The senior politician and executive mayor, Ms Thandi Ngxonono, was implicated in the report and took special leave.[6]

In September 2024 the Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, said that his office would investigate funds that went missing in 2017 that had been meant to renovate a theatre in Secunda.[7]

References

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  1. ^ "Mayoral Committee". Govan Mbeki Municipality. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  2. ^ "Contact list: Executive Mayors". Government Communication & Information System. Archived from the original on 14 July 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
  3. ^ a b c "Statistics by place". Statistics South Africa. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  4. ^ Lookup Tables - Statistics South Africa[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ "Election Result Table for LGE2021 — Govan Mbeki". wikitable.frith.dev. Retrieved 2022-11-24.
  6. ^ a b Mathebula, Sifiso (30 October 2020). "Locals want Hawks to make arrests". ridgetimes.co.za. Ridge Times Hoëvelder / Highvelder. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  7. ^ https://www.news24.com/citypress/news/gaytons-office-to-investigate-missing-r3-million-meant-for-dilapidated-theatres-refurbishment-20240915
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26°33′S 29°10′E / 26.550°S 29.167°E / -26.550; 29.167