From a stench to finances: Here’s what is on the new Mopani District mayor’s to-do list

Jubilation was the order of the day as Limpopo welcomed three new mayors at Fetakgomo-Tubatse Local Municipality in Burgersfort, Greater Letaba Local Municipality in Modjadjiskloof, and Mopani District Municipality in Giyani this week.

Councillor Rosina Ramalatso was appointed mayor for the Greater Letaba Local Municipality on Tuesday. Ramalatso previously served as the Council whip and as a former speaker of the municipality before being appointed as a member of the executive committee.

New mayor for the Greater Letaba Local Municipality, Rosina Ramalatso. Picture: Supplied

Councillor Dorah Mphethi is the new mayor for the Fetakgomo/Tubatse Local Municipality. Mphethi served as the chief whip of the municipality before she acted in the position of mayor – the position she was later elected into.

New mayor for the Fetakgomo/Tubatse Local Municipality, Dorah Mphethi. Picture: Supplied

Former Greater Letaba Local Municipality mayor Dagma Mamanyoha was also appointed the executive mayor of the Mopani District Municipality.

Former Greater Letaba municipal mayor and now executive mayor for the Mopani district municipaity Dagma Mamanyoha. Picture: Supplied

The appointment of the three follows former mayors Eddie Maila and Pule Shayi being elevated to provincial politics as MECs for health and cooperative governance, human settlements and traditional affairs, while Ramalatso comes in after Mamanyoha’s resignation.

Maila and Shayi were appointed during Premier Phophi Ramathuba’s Cabinet reshuffle earlier this month.

The Citizen reported last week on a simmering tribal contestation in Norman Mashabane – the ANC’s biggest region in Limpopo, with 129 branches – over who should be appointed to lead Mopani District Municipality: a Tsonga or Sepedi-speaking comrade.

It is understood that on the advice of ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula and ANC Limpopo provincial secretary Vhamusanda Reuben Madadzhe, the party’s regional executive committee finally appointed Mamanyoha, beating his contender, member of the mayoral committee Basani Shivhambu.

‘Alive to the task before us’

In his acceptance speech, Mamanyoha pledged to live up to the expectations of the people of the region, the province and the country under President Cyril Ramaphosa.

“I remain thankful to the ANC for its confidence in bestowing upon me the huge tasks and responsibilities of leading the district municipality, and to continue to make Mopani a tourist destination of choice and the food basket of the country.

“We continue to serve at the privilege of this gigantic organisation of our forebears that always provided the political and analytical grounding that is very essential for effective public service delivery.

“I stand here today alive to the task before us, grateful for the trust you have in me, and mindful of the sacrifices borne by those who served before me.

“I therefore wish to record my sincere thanks and appreciation to the former Executive Mayor, comrade Pule Shayi, on whose shoulders I stand to complete the 49 days of his tenure as the Executive Mayor of the 5th Council of this district municipality,” said Mamanyoha.

The to-do list

Among the daunting tasks awaiting Mamanyoha are providing water, improving road infrastructure, fighting tribalism between Tsonga- and Sepedi-speaking communities, and completing Phase 2 of the Giyani Water Reticulation project.

Mamanyoha is also expected to put the district municipality’s finances in order. The Mopani district is one of the five councils whose July 2026 Equity Share Grant was withheld amid maladministration. Others are Fetakgomo/Tubatse, Mookgophong/ Modimolle, Musina and Thabazimbi.

Mamanyoha is also expected to address the protracted stench surrounding Giyani town, its entrances and the central business district (CBD).

The stench, caused by unattended sewage spilling onto the streets, has affected tourism and economic investment in the town for months.

He said the stench in the town was receiving urgent attention and that water problems were getting attention from all three spheres of government, including the national Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), the Limpopo provincial government through Lepelle Northern Water, and Mopani District Municipality.

Controversy

But the appointment was not without controversy.

After recognising everyone in the chamber, including former mayor Joshua Matlou, Mamanyoha failed to recognise ANC Norman Mashabane Regional Secretary Sonia Ngobeni Maswanganyi – a move that shocked many in the chamber.

Another aspect is that the chamber was filled to the rafters, with the majority being Sepedi-speaking ANC card-carrying members, mostly from Mamanyoha’s sub-region of Greater Letaba and Greater Tzaneen.

Many said it was an indication that tribalism was still rearing its ugly head in Mopani.

“Had the new mayor been Tsonga, there would have been a lot of Xibelani [famous Tsonga traditional dance] inside and outside the chamber,” one attendee remarked.