Overview

• Answering questions in the National Council of Provinces, President Cyril Ramaphosa said Cape Town underperformed the metro average from 2011 to 2022 in expanding access to refuse removal, piped water, electricity and flush toilets.
• He argued per‑capita infrastructure spending remains significantly lower in townships and informal settlements, reflecting investment patterns that mirror apartheid‑era inequities.
• Mayor Geordin Hill‑Lewis said the president is trying to save face after previously praising DA‑run cities, insisting Cape Town is South Africa’s most functional city.
• DA provincial whip Frederik Jacobus Badenhorst pointed to a reported R40 billion three‑year infrastructure budget that he says directs 75% of spending to lower‑income housing, and highlighted successive clean audits.
• Ramaphosa acknowledged the city’s strong audit outcomes but stressed service delivery impact as the key measure, and no independent reconciliation of the competing data has been reported.