By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Office of the Public Protector released a report that has found the City of Cape Town has failed to provide basic municipal services to residents of Langa and Khayelitsha.
This follows complaints raised by the residents during the Public Protector South Africa’s outreach visits to the Western Cape in 2022 and 2023.
Deputy Public Protector Advocate Dinkie Dube released the findings in Report No. 12 of 2026/27 during a media briefing in Cape Town on Tuesday, July 7, 2026.
The investigation focused on complaints about overflowing sewage, deteriorating municipal housing, poor waste collection, delays in signing lease agreements with tenants, inadequate maintenance of roads and communal areas, limited access to water, non-functional public lighting, and safety concerns at municipal clinics.
The Public Protector found substantiated maladministration under section 182(1)(a) of the Constitution: unsigned lease agreements at Langa Flats in breach of residents’ security of tenure; unrepaired sewer infrastructure and non-functional fire safety equipment; no access to adequate water for residents of SST-Marikana, Khayelitsha, in violation of section 27(1)(b); non-functional high-mast lighting exposing residents to violence; and safety gaps at Mathew Goniwe and Town Two clinics.
Dube said that the report shows that municipal resources are not being allocated equitably across the metro.
She said while the city cited budget, staffing and resource constraints, as well as violence in some communities, it still has a constitutional duty to provide basic services to all residents, particularly those living in poorer areas.
She urged the metro to extend similar attention to other historically disadvantaged communities.
“The report deals with residents of Langa Flats and Khayelitsha. I implore the City to look at other disadvantaged communities, like Mitchells Plain, to be able to realise equitable distribution of resources,” she said.
The Public Protector has imposed binding deadlines on the City Manager: 30 days to restore water access at SST-Marikana, 60 days for a long-term cleaning strategy at Langa Flats and for high-mast lighting engagement with Eskom, 120 days for long-term sewer rehabilitation, and six months for a lease-regularisation plan and for clinic fire-safety upgrades.
The MEC for Local Government Anton Bredell is required to monitor the city’s implementation of these actions on a quarterly basis.
The City of Cape Town said it welcomed the report’s acknowledgement of the work it had undertaken during the four-year investigation and noted that Public Protector had also directed recommendations to National Treasury and the Department of Human Settlements.
“The City welcomes the Public Protector’s emphasis that it has worked closely with her office to ensure all matters have been attended to,” the municipality said.
The City said refuse collection, sewer maintenance and fire safety measures at the N2 Gateway rental housing development had already been addressed, while further infrastructure upgrades were planned.
It said 94 valid lease agreements were in place, although 547 occupants refused to sign agreements and 64 had declined to renew them, adding that the legal action might be required to regularise the occupancy.