An assessment of participatory governance in Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality in the Free State

[摘要] In South Africa, the legislative mandate brought about the transition to democracy,and the subsequent policy and legislation framework, such as the Constitution of theRepublic of South Africa, 1996; the White Paper on Local Government, 1998; the LocalGovernment: Municipal Structures Act, Act 117 of 1998; and the Local Government:Municipal Systems Act, Act 32 of 2000, permitted citizens to take part in governanceand policy-making. Yet, according to observation and the views of citizens in theMangaung Metropolitan Municipally (MMM), the importance of participation as per theConstitution, as preached by the President and promoted by democrats, has yet to betranslated into a lived reality at local government level. Furthermore, the servicedelivery protests that have taken place since 2004 are the result of poor participatorygovernance. In this regard, participatory governance in the development of municipalplans appears not to be realising its anticipated goals of closing the gap betweengovernment and its constituents because of a lack of consultation in the planningprocess and decision-making. Brynard (1996:138) states that local government isviewed as a means and a first point of contact to encourage the participation of peoplein the planning and policy-making process.This study involved a literature study, which included an extensive review of therelevant literature, legislation, policy documents, journal articles, books, conferencepapers and government reports on the purpose of local government, thedevelopmental role of local government, as well as the requirements, purpose, roles,functions and mandate of municipal councillors, ward councillors, and wardcommittees. Newspaper articles were used to find examples of successful orunsuccessful participation. This study provides recommendations on how to ensurethe continuation of participatory governance in MMM. In this regard, the findings andrecommendations outline the parameters against which to measure the success ofMMM's participatory agenda, and to ensure that the sustainable developmentoutcomes of the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) are met.

[发布机构] University of the Free State