North West residents voiced deep skepticism and frustration during President Cyril Ramaphosa’s visit to the province on Thursday, with many dismissing the engagement as a political stunt ahead of elections.
The President met with provincial and national government leaders in Rustenburg to develop a plan for fixing the province’s ailing municipalities, which are plagued by long-standing service delivery challenges and political infighting.
Despite the high-level meeting, residents on the ground stated that service delivery is at an all-time low, with many municipalities failing to provide basic services. One resident captured the prevailing sentiment, accusing the government of a history of broken promises.
“Mr. Ramaphosa is visiting North West… it’s always the case towards the elections,” the resident said. “They are always going all around trying to win the support… after the elections you are nowhere to be found.”
The resident cited a pattern of engagement only during election periods, accompanied by gestures like distributing food parcels, which fail to lead to lasting change. “They failed, my sister,” the resident added. “There’s nothing constructive which we are expecting… it’s just a visit.”
The criticism extended to local governance, where political infighting in councils was identified as a key cause of the collapse in service delivery. Residents expressed a feeling of being ignored by their elected officials, with one stating, “We give them what the problem is, at the end of the day… so up to so far,” indicating that their complaints have yielded no results.
With the 2026 local government elections drawing nearer, the report found that young and old residents hold differing views on political participation, though many remain disillusioned by the unfulfilled promises from previous government interventions.
