STELLALANDER-VRYBURG: The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the North West has expressed concern over Premier Lazarus Mokgosi’s recent changes within the provincial administration, describing the adjustments as cosmetic and ineffective in addressing long-standing governance failures.
Premier Mokgosi announced the redeployment of several senior officials, presenting the move as an effort to “bolster administrative stability.”
However, according to DA Caucus Leader in the North West Provincial Legislature, Freddy Sonakile, the reshuffle merely relocates underperforming officials without tackling the underlying issues affecting service delivery. One of the key concerns is the transfer of Mothupi Mokhatla, former Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, to the Department of Health. The DA argues that shifting an HOD from one underperforming department to another is unlikely to bring meaningful improvement, particularly as the Health Department faces challenges including mismanagement, deteriorating infrastructure, and high levels of irregular expenditure. The DA also highlighted the instability created by leaving the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development under the leadership of an acting Head of Department, Kenalemang Bodigelo-Nyezi, following repeated audit findings and the loss of conditional grants reported by the Auditor-General. In another redeployment, Obakeng Mongale, former Head of Health, has been moved to the Office of the Premier to coordinate the Provincial Segment of the National Dialogue. The DA maintains that the initiative has not been effective nationally and warns that the province, with unemployment at 52%, cannot afford further investment in processes that do not produce tangible outcomes. Sonakile stated that if Premier Mokgosi was serious about administrative reform, he would release the performance evaluation reports used to justify the redeployments, address audit and service delivery failures through competence rather than convenience, and prioritise the appointment of permanent, skilled leaders instead of relying on ongoing acting positions. To ensure accountability, the DA has submitted a formal request to the Speaker of the North West Provincial Legislature, Dr Desbo Mohono, calling for an urgent discussion in the next sitting. The party insists that Premier Mokgosi must explain the rationale behind the reshuffle and provide clarity on the performance considerations that informed the changes. The DA maintains that the province cannot afford continued administrative instability and urges the Premier to account fully to both the Legislature and the residents of the North West.
