Johannes Phumani Phungula Local Municipality
Johannes Phumani Phungula Municipality is a local municipality within the Harry Gwala District Municipality, in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. It was renamed in May 2025 after ANC struggle veteran Johannes Phungula. The previous name, Ubuhlebezwe, is an isiZulu word meaning "the beauty of the land", derived from Alan Paton's novel, Cry, The Beloved Country.
Main places
The 2001 census divided the municipality into the following main places:| Place | Code | Area | Population |
| Amakhuze | 40.53 | 4,726 | |
| Dlamini/Vusathina Mazulu | 19.13 | 3,532 | |
| Dunge | 47.70 | 2,666 | |
| Ikhwezi/Lokusa | 48.56 | 12,316 | |
| Ixopo | 6.24 | 8,434 | |
| Izimpethu Endlovu | 10.23 | 751 | |
| Mjoli/Mawushe(Sizwe Hlanganani) | 72.47 | 12,580 | |
| Nyuswa | 33.78 | 4,063 | |
| Shiyabanye/Nhlangwini | 85.96 | 11,476 | |
| Ukuthula | 20.04 | 10,208 | |
| Vukani | 55.92 | 9,804 | |
| Vumakwenza/Sangcwaba | 94.13 | 4,524 | |
| Remainder of the municipality | 1,091.78 | 16,873 |
Politics
The municipal council consists of twenty-seven members elected by mixed-member proportional representation. Fourteen councillors are elected by first-past-the-post voting in fourteen wards, while the remaining thirteen 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 won a majority of eighteen seats on the council.The following table shows the results of the election.