[4] Prior to the Twelfth Amendment of the Constitution of South Africa in 2005, confirmed by the Thirteenth in 2007, it was part of the Eastern Cape.

The municipality faces severe backlogs with respect to water, sanitation and electricity provision.

In addition, road infrastructure remains poor and provides only limited access to the area.

Twenty-two councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in twenty-two wards, while the remaining twenty-one 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 thirty-three seats on the council.