By Teboho Moloi
BETHLEHEM – The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) in the Free State has launched a scathing attack on municipal leadership, accusing local governments of failing to modernise organisational structures in line with new legislation—an oversight it says is deepening the service delivery crisis.
Free State COSATU chairperson Tsisetso Mahlatsi said municipalities are buckling under the weight of outdated systems, leaving workers overstretched and communities underserved.
Mahlatsi warned that the failure to re-engineer municipal structures is directly fuelling high vacancy rates and operational inefficiencies.
“Municipalities are unable to fill critical posts because they are still operating on obsolete structures. As a result, employees are forced to carry workloads meant for multiple people,” he said.
He painted a grim picture of strained municipal workforces, where a single employee is often expected to perform the duties of up to five people—an unsustainable situation that is eroding productivity and service standards.
“This overload is crippling service delivery and unfairly exposes workers to public criticism, with communities labelling them as lazy, when in fact they are overwhelmed,” Mahlatsi added.
In a pointed critique of current administrations, COSATU accused municipal leaders of prioritizing senior management appointments at the expense of frontline service delivery roles.
“Where service delivery actually happens, there is a crisis. Yet municipalities are quick to fill senior positions while neglecting lower-level posts that directly impact communities,” Mahlatsi said.
The federation’s remarks underscore growing frustration over governance failures at local government level, as pressure mounts on municipalities to reform or risk further collapse in basic service delivery.
