For Vincent Mpanza, another election means another promise that a house is coming.
For the ANC, persuading residents like him to believe again could determine whether it retains control of eThekwini.
As ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa campaigned in the municipality on October 28, promising action on water shortages, residents interviewed separately by IOL in Kenville and Sea Cow Lake described leaking pipes, inadequate sanitation and years of waiting for housing.
Mpanza, who lives in Boxwood informal settlement, said successive elections had brought assurances of housing projects, followed by explanations for why residents were still waiting.
“Every election we are told there is a scheme being built and our names are on the list. When we follow up we are told the housing schemes are being built in phases.”
ANC must rebuild is support
That gap between promises and residents’ experiences runs through the ANC’s battle to retain the municipality in the November 4,2026 local government elections.
Having lost its outright council majority in 2021, the party faces two distinct challenges: rebuilding its electoral support and securing enough council backing to lead the next administration.
Ramaphosa takes the campaign to eThekwini, campaigning in eMaGabheni, south of Durban, Ramaphosa said infrastructure work would address water shortages and that tankers were providing temporary relief.
“We are sorting out the bulk water issues and installing pipes,” he said.
He expressed confidence that the ANC could regain a council majority. His assurances put the delivery of basic services at the centre of the party’s closing campaign.
ANC’s ward 34 contest
In Kenville and Sea Cow Lake, residents’ accounts suggest that restoring confidence will require visible improvements alongside campaign commitments. Ward 34 shows how crowded the contest has become. Ward 34, which includes Greenwood Park, Effingham, Kenville, Redhill, Avoca and Sea Cow Lake, illustrates the competition the ANC faces.
The DA won the ward in 2011 and retained it in 2016 and 2021. But after DA councillor Bobby Maharajh resigned, independent candidate Andrew Akkers won the August 2024 by-election.
According to the IEC, Akkers secured 43.93% of the vote, with turnout at 25.91%. The IEC recorded the DA’s winning share in the previous ward election as 38.92%.
The MK Party finished second in the by-election with about 19%, followed by the ANC on about 18% and the DA on about 15%.
The result carries a warning for the ANC: a setback for the DA does not automatically translate into an ANC recovery.
The low turnout also limits what the by-election can tell us about November’s contest. It offers evidence of a competitive ward, rather than a forecast of how its full electorate will vote.
Housing promises meet daily service failures
For residents interviewed by IOL, the election is inseparable from everyday conditions.
Mpanza complained about broken pipes, water wastage and delays in repairing an ablution block. He said housing commitments had repeatedly failed to produce the change residents expected.
Ndumiso Ngobese, from Kenville, raised concerns about electricity outages, inadequate ablution facilities and families struggling without sufficient income.
Sea Cow Lake resident Ernest Phakathi cited water supply problems, rising municipal bills and unemployment as reasons for his dissatisfaction with the ANC.
Louie Perumal, who has lived in Kenville for 50 years, said there had been little development and urged ANC leaders to visit communities to see conditions for themselves.
“The municipality cannot attend to a water pipe leak timeously. It is ridiculous and concerning the amount of water being wasted,” he said.
Durban resident Razia Shaik said unresolved complaints had weakened her confidence in the ANC leadership. She accused politicians of becoming visible in communities only during election campaigns.
These interviews do not establish how the ward will vote. They do, however, identify the complaints the ANC must answer as it seeks to rebuild support.
Image: Supplied
An independent councillor adds to the pressure
Akkers said he had expanded his work across Ward 34 since taking office in 2024, including establishing service delivery groups in Kenville and Sea Cow Lake.
“My responsibility is to serve all residents, irrespective of whom they supported at the ballot box,” he said.
He said he met informal settlement leaders regularly and followed up with municipal departments on housing, sanitation and other concerns.
Akkers acknowledged that a councillor could not resolve the housing crisis alone. He said the role required representing residents, pursuing their complaints and explaining delays.
“Residents also deserve honest communication about what is being done, what progress is being made and what obstacles remain,” he said.
Akkers told IOL he had been announced as ActionSA’s Ward 34 candidate, although he said he had not yet formally joined the party.
Anil Beekrum, who chairs both the Kenville and Sea Cow Lake Ratepayers’ and Residents’ Association and the DA’s Ward 34 branch, also criticised deteriorating services and unfulfilled housing promises.
For the ANC, this competition means residents’ dissatisfaction is being contested by several political alternatives.
Ward 71 offers a lesson in winning and losing support
Ward 71 in Chatsworth provides another example of how political fortunes can change. The ANC’s Previn Vedan won the ward from the DA in a 2018 by-election with 45.70% of the vote. The DA had won 62.33% in the 2016 ward election. The seat subsequently returned to the DA in 2021.
The sequence shows that winning a ward does not guarantee a party can retain it at the next election. Vedan, a former councillor who now leads the ANC branch, said rebuilding confidence required a return to community politics.
“In my view, rebuilding public confidence in the African National Congress in Chatsworth, Ward 71 and communities across South Africa requires us to return to the fundamentals of community politics: listening to residents, addressing their concerns and demonstrating that public service is about people rather than positions,” he said.
Image: TUMI PAKKIES
Needs of the community
Vedan said community organising had brought volunteers and residents together around housing, sanitation, roads and access to services. But he acknowledged that organising and delivering government services were different responsibilities.
“Residents want more than promises. They want representatives who listen, engage the relevant authorities, and remain involved until problems are properly addressed. Community activism and government delivery are not the same thing. Where problems remain, residents deserve an honest explanation and a clear plan of action,” Vedan said.
ANC candidates face demands for accountability
Vedan is not standing in this election and is backing Mxolisi Wilson Thobela as the ANC’s ward candidate. Thobela said the party needed to acknowledge its shortcomings and demonstrate that renewal extended beyond campaign language.
“Residents want to know that their concerns are heard and that their elected representatives are prepared to act. Organisational renewal must also be more than a slogan. Where mistakes have been made, they must be acknowledged and corrected.”
Vedan said the ANC’s historical achievements could not be used to dismiss present frustrations over unemployment, inadequate services and concerns about corruption.
He argued that branches needed to remain active throughout the year, with accessible and accountable public representatives.
Retaining eThekwini starts with rebuilding trust
Wards 34 and 71 offer a view of the ANC’s challenge, although neither alone can determine who governs eThekwini. Winning back wards would strengthen its position. Support on the separate proportional representation ballot also contributes to its council representation. If no party secures an outright majority, agreements between parties will again matter in deciding who leads the municipality.
In the communities visited by IOL, residents’ demands were concrete: repair leaks, maintain sanitation facilities, explain housing delays and remain available after voting ends. Ramaphosa’s campaign promises now sit alongside those expectations. The ANC’s task is to persuade enough voters that it can turn them into results.
As Vedan put it: “We must have the humility to acknowledge shortcomings, the discipline to correct them.”
