The cholera outbreak in Tshwane has again put the spotlight on the crisis in local government negatively impacting service delivery to citizens. 

Local government is often regarded as the coalface at which the state delivers citizens’ basic needs. But what is their recourse when it fails to do so, as is the case in much of the country? 

To explore the matter, we are joined on Sunday Times Politics Weekly by Dr Sithembile Mbete, a lecturer in the department of political sciences at the University of Pretoria and an associate fellow at its Centre for Governance Innovation, and Sandile Swana, a political analyst and governance expert.