The Constitutional Court has definitively dismissed the Ngwathe local municipality's application for leave to appeal a 2025 high court order mandating its dissolution, citing a lack of reasonable prospects for success and ordering costs against the municipality. This marks a final victory for AfriForum, which initiated the high court case in May 2024, arguing the Free State municipality was in a severe service delivery crisis. The Bloemfontein high court had previously ruled in June 2025 that Ngwathe failed to meet its obligations to residents in Parys, Heilbron, Koppies, and Vredefort, ordering the council's dissolution and immediate provincial government intervention. AfriForum highlighted systemic failures, including contaminated water, sewage spills, financial insolvency, and poor management, as reasons for this outcome.