Opposition parties in Cape Town have intensified political pressure on the embattled city administration following explosive new findings by the Public Protector regarding severe service delivery failures across local townships.
The report uncovered chronic neglect affecting Langa Flats and Khayelitsha, sparking fierce criticism from ActionSA and Build One South Africa ahead of crucial local government elections. Both parties argue that years of broken promises have left residents trapped in deteriorating conditions while the administration celebrates achievements elsewhere.
ActionSA Slams DA Leadership
Dereleen James, ActionSA’s mayoral candidate, unleashed a blistering critique of the Democratic Alliance’s governance record following the Public Protector’s explosive findings on township neglect.
ActionSA welcomes the Public Protector’s damning findings that the City of Cape Town, under successive DA administrations, systematically failed to provide adequate service delivery to the residents of Langa and Khayelitsha and is guilty of maladministration,” James said.
She highlighted the investigation as evidence that basic municipal services, housing programmes, sanitation systems and sewerage networks had deteriorated through sustained administrative neglect and broken commitments.
“From the failure to provide basic municipal services and housing to inadequate sanitation and collapsing sewerage infrastructure, the Public Protector has painted a damning picture of a city that has failed to fulfil even its most legal obligations, abandoning these communities through years of neglect,” James said.
James connected the report to a recent Constitutional Court judgment concerning affordable housing, arguing that both developments revealed a persistent pattern of inequality.
“Together, these findings paint an unmistakable picture of a DA-led administration that has failed to dismantle the inequalities of the past and has instead actively worked to deepen them,” James said.
She rejected the notion that Cape Town could claim excellence while entire communities endured substandard conditions.
“No government can claim success when entire communities are repeatedly denied the basic standard of service delivery that every resident deserves. A city cannot call itself ‘best run’ while large sections of its population continue to experience second-class services,” James said.
Not even a week later!
After last week’s damning Constitutional Court finding, this morning the Public Protector has again exposed that:
The DA-run City of Cape Town has FAILED to deliver services for ALL its residents. pic.twitter.com/Tosx7ajNoB
— Dereleen James MP (@DereleenJ) July 7, 2026
BOSA Demands Immediate Intervention
Roger Solomons, Build One South Africa’s mayoral candidate, demanded swift implementation of the Public Protector’s remedial action to address deep systemic service delivery failures.
“The Public Protector’s investigation confirms what many Capetonians already know: while Cape Town works for some, systemic failures continue to deny basic municipal services to many of the city’s most vulnerable communities,” Solomons said.
He identified inadequate sanitation, broken sewerage infrastructure, stalled housing delivery and neglected basic municipal services as core failures now plaguing vulnerable neighbourhoods.
“This represents a pattern of neglect that has left thousands of Cape Town residents without the dignity and quality of life they deserve,” he said.
Solomons endorsed the call for stronger coordination between government departments and urged the Ministers of Human Settlements and Cooperative Governance to step up their direct involvement.
“BOSA supports the immediate implementation of these recommendations,” Solomons said.
He challenged the administration’s leadership credentials, insisting that municipal success could never be measured by affluent suburbs alone.
“A city cannot claim success while entire communities continue to live without reliable basic services. Cape Town cannot continue celebrating excellence in one part of the city while accepting persistent failure in another,” Solomons said.
Opposition Pushes For Equal Treatment
Solomons argued that Cape Town’s reputation as South Africa’s best-run metro remained hollow while families in informal settlements endured daily indignities without relief.
“Cape Town’s reputation as South Africa’s best-run metro will only be meaningful when that standard is experienced equally by families in Khayelitsha, Langa Flats, Gugulethu, Philippi, Dunoon and every other underserved community,” Solomons said.
He demanded an immediate end to bureaucratic excuses and called for measurable targets, transparent reporting and genuine accountability across all spheres of government.
“The City must stop explaining these failures and start fixing them,” Solomons said.
Solomons said his party would push for measurable service delivery targets, transparent reporting on progress and stronger coordination across all spheres of government.
“Every Capetonian deserves the same dignity, the same opportunity and the same quality of municipal service. Nothing less should be acceptable,” he said.
James reinforced ActionSA’s commitment to placing equitable service delivery at the heart of its 2026 Local Government Elections campaign across every ward.
She insisted that every resident deserved safe neighbourhoods, reliable municipal services and equal treatment from local government officials regardless of their postal code or income level.
Sewage overflowing.
Broken lights.
No water.
No leases.
Unsafe clinics. @PublicProtector found substantiated maladministration in Langa Flats & Khayelitsha after a four-year probe.The DA’s own budget claims 75% of infrastructure spend is “pro-poor,” with no ward-level… pic.twitter.com/uZFzWxFXPp
— Brett Herron 🇿🇦🍉 (@brettherron) July 7, 2026