Ditsobotla Local Municipality

Ditsobotla Municipality (Tswana: Mmasepala wa Ditsobotla) is a local municipality within the Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, in the North West province of South Africa. The seat of the municipality is Lichtenburg.

Ditsobotla
Local municipality
Seal
Location in the North West
Country	South Africa
Province	North West
District	Ngaka Modiri Molema
Seat	Lichtenburg
Wards	21
Government [1]
• Type	Municipal council
• Mayor	Tsholofelo Moreo
Area
• Total	6,465 km2 (2,496 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	168,902
• Density	26.13/km2 (67.66/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [2]
• Black African	89.1%
• Coloured	1.9%
• Indian/Asian	0.6%
• White	8.2%
First languages (2011) [2]
• Tswana	78.6%
• Afrikaans	9.8%
• Xhosa	3.0%
• English	2.4%
• Other	6.2%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Municipal code	NW384

Main places

The 2001 census divided the municipality into the following main places:^[3]

Place	Code	Area (km2)	Population	Most spoken language
Bakwena Ba Ga Serobatse	60901	2.37	1,392	Tswana
Banogeng	60902	0.72	502	Tswana
Boikhutso	60903	2.22	16,914	Tswana
Coligny	60904	3.50	2,271	Afrikaans
Ga-Raphalane	60906	26.34	24,104	Tswana
Itekeng	60907	0.35	2,591	Tswana
Itsoseng	60908	7.62	22,879	Tswana
Kopano	60909	6.78	8,325	Tswana
Lichtenburg	60910	87.13	11,927	Afrikaans
Mosiane	60911	1.73	1,056	Tswana
Tlhabologang	60912	0.63	5,852	Tswana
Remainder of the municipality	60905	6,325.49	45,059	Tswana

Politics

Main article: Ditsobotla Local Municipality elections

The municipal council consists of thirty-nine members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Twenty councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in twenty wards, while the remaining nineteen are chosen from party lists so that the total number of party representatives is proportional to the number of votes received. In the election of 1 November 2021 the African National Congress (ANC) won a majority of twenty-one seats on the council. The following table shows the results of the election.^[4]

Party		Ward			List			Total seats
		Votes	%	Seats	Votes	%	Seats
	African National Congress	15,005	50.00	17	15,625	53.19	4	21
	Economic Freedom Fighters	4,195	13.98	0	4,838	16.47	6	6
	Democratic Alliance	4,276	14.25	3	4,291	14.61	3	6
	Independent candidates	3,082	10.27	0				0
	Freedom Front Plus	1,226	4.09	0	1,305	4.44	2	2
	Forum for Service Delivery	1,082	3.61	0	1,109	3.78	2	2
	African Christian Democratic Party	401	1.34	0	442	1.50	1	1
	African Independent Congress				770	2.62	1	1
	7 other parties	740	2.47	0	994	3.38	0	0
Total		30,007	100.00	20	29,374	100.00	19	39
Valid votes		30,007	97.03		29,374	95.10
Invalid/blank votes		918	2.97		1,515	4.90
Total votes		30,925	100.00		30,889	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		69,421	44.55		69,421	44.50

After infighting between two African National Congress factions, resulting in the council having two mayors and two speakers, the council was dissolved by the national and provincial governments. A by-election to elect an entirely new council will be held in December 2022.^[5]

Municipal collapse

The municipality has experienced a collapse in basic services due to corruption, financial mismanagement and political instability. In 2025, it failed to submit financial reports to the Auditor General for scrutiny.

In November 2022, President Cyril Ramaphosa described it as "a town taken over by gangsterism".^[6]

The council was dissolved, and by-elections held in December 2022.^[7][8]

However, the situation did not improve, and in October 2023, the court ordered the council be placed under provincial intervention.

In April 2025, after continued deterioration, non-profit organisation Sakeliga is seeking the highest form of intervention, national intervention.^[6]

In July 2025, the court ordered the municipality to pay R7.5 million, plus interest, outstanding to a contractor. The contractor had completed electrical repairs in December 2023 according to its contract agreeing a fee of R7.6 million for the services. However, the municipality paid only R100,000, and then later claimed that the procurement was unlawful, making the contract invalid.^[9]

In September 2025, cabinet placed Ditsobotla under administration.^[10]