ELECTIONS will soon be held in the Naledi municipality, Free State, to reconstitute a new council after the disbandment of the current one owing to poor governance and infighting.

Last month the provincial department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs disbanded the municipality after several interventions had failed.

The situation became worse when the mayor of the municipality, Motlatsi Motlohi, was gunned down.

Department spokesperson Senne Bogatsu yesterday said the elections would be held on July 21.

She said the council was disbanded in terms of section 139 of the Local Government Act of 2003, which gives the provincial government powers to disintegrate councils.

"The section allows the provincial government to dissolve the municipal council and appoint an administrator until a newly appointed municipal council has been declared elected," she said.

Bogatsu said the municipality had since 2006 had numerous administrative and political problems.

"These problems included an inability to convene meetings, with the last ordinary meeting held in August 2009. Since then the council could not form a quorum and was run by means of adhoc special council meetings."

She said the council inability to convene meetings and take resolutions affected service delivery.

The provincial government intervened and appointed an acting administrator to normalise the situation. But Bogatsu said the interventions had had a limited impact.

"There has been failure in governance, financial management and day-to-day functionality of the municipality and service delivery," Bogatsu said.