MBOMBELA, MPUMALANGA — The African People’s Convention (APC) is leveraging its grassroots strategy for the 2026 Local Government Elections, introducing a ward-based budgeting model to ensure equitable resource distribution across seven provinces.
Led by party president Themba Godi—a veteran politician and former chairperson of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA)—the APC is taking a highly deliberate approach to the upcoming polls. Rather than contesting everywhere, the party has strategically selected municipalities across seven of the country’s nine provinces, intentionally excluding the Western Cape and Northern Cape to focus on areas where they believe they have substantive grassroots support.
Godi noted that being out of parliament and the SCOPA chairperson role has provided him with the necessary time to stabilize the party and prepare for this electoral cycle with clarity and focus. He described the current campaign as solid, with final logistical preparations underway for party agents on the ground.
The cornerstone of the APC’s local government policy is its proposed ward-based budgeting system. Godi explained that the fundamental issue in South African municipalities is not just a lack of resources, but the failure to guarantee that promised services like water, roads, and electricity are actually funded and delivered.
To solve this, the APC proposes that 20% of the municipal budget be shared equally among all wards. This ensures a foundational, equitable baseline where every community is guaranteed a dedicated budget for their prioritized needs. The remaining capital budget would then be topped up and directed toward the least developed areas.
“What we are saying is that at a foundational level, the sharing should be equitable,” Godi stated, pointing out that currently, many communities are told there is no money for services, while other wards receive zero budget allocation for an entire financial year. The APC’s model aims to guarantee that every ward receives dedicated funding, with the promise that if needs exceed the initial budget, subsequent years will see continued financial commitment.
