The Mahikeng High Court in South Africa has ordered Ditsobotla Local Municipality to pay over R7.5 million to Kwende Construction CC for emergency electricity repairs carried out in December 2023. The judgment followed a legal dispute between the municipality and the construction company over unpaid fees after a contract was completed and acknowledged.
According to the court documents, Ditsobotla Municipality awarded Kwende Construction an emergency contract on November 7, 2023, to restore power to six different areas within the local government after a major electricity failure. The total value of the contract was R7.6 million. Kwende successfully completed the work by December 13, and four days later, on December 17, the municipality issued a certificate of compliance to confirm that the repairs had been completed in accordance with the agreement.
On December 22, 2023, the municipality paid R100,000 towards the contract and signed a written acknowledgment of debt, which confirmed that a balance of R7.5 million was still owed to the contractor. Both parties also entered a repayment agreement at the time. However, the municipality failed to pay the balance, which led Kwende Construction to approach the Mahikeng High Court to recover the money.
The municipality tried to defend its refusal to pay by claiming that the procurement process for the emergency contract was flawed and therefore unlawful. It argued that the contract was invalid from the start and that no amount of certification or signed agreements could override the legal requirement for proper tender processes. It also claimed that Kwende had not submitted full documentation such as detailed invoices and supporting records for the work done.
But the High Court dismissed the municipality’s arguments. In its ruling, the court described Ditsobotla’s position as “bare and unsubstantiated” and said it did not raise any genuine factual dispute. It emphasized that the municipality had accepted the work, issued a compliance certificate, and entered a formal debt acknowledgment and payment agreement. Based on this, the court ruled that Ditsobotla could not now use claims of procurement irregularities to avoid its responsibility to pay for services already delivered.
The court further said that allowing such a defence would undermine legal certainty and good faith in contractual relationships, especially where a public authority had already benefited from the work done. It made it clear that compliance and acknowledgment documents were enough to hold the municipality accountable.
As a result, the Mahikeng High Court ordered the Ditsobotla Local Municipality to pay the outstanding R7.5 million to Kwende Construction, along with interest calculated from January 31, 2024, until the date the payment is fully made. The court gave the municipality a 14-day deadline to comply with the order.
The legal ruling is likely to draw attention to the state of procurement and payment discipline within local governments in South Africa, especially when it comes to emergency contracts. It also serves as a strong message to municipalities that public entities cannot simply backtrack on payments by claiming procedural lapses after work has been accepted and documented.
This is not the first time Ditsobotla has come under scrutiny. The North West-based municipality has faced several governance and financial challenges in recent years, leading to questions about its ability to manage public funds and fulfil its responsibilities.
Viewers say the ruling could push other service providers who have not been paid by local councils to take legal action. It also reinforces the importance of due process, record-keeping, and contractual integrity in public procurement.
