With the horse-trading between political rivals in hung councils almost done, the ANC faces a far more extensive humiliation than the drubbing it received in the local government elections initially suggested.Not only has it officially lost its spiritual home, Nelson Mandela Bay, to a coalition led by the Democratic Alliance, but Mogale City is now also beyond the ruling party's grasp, thanks to the EFF and other opposition parties siding with the official opposition.The capital, Tshwane, will follow suit today, while the platinum hub of Rustenburg is set to be officially ruled by an opposition alliance focusing on service delivery.The fate of industrial hub Ekurhuleni hangs by a thread, as does Johannesburg itself, even though the ANC won the most votes in these cities.To put the magnitude of the rout in perspective, these cities, together with DA-run Cape Town, make up 70% of South Africa's gross domestic product.Not only has the ruling party lost considerable support at the polls, its powers of persuasion also proved deficient - though to be fair, the track record of the Zuma administration must have been a major hindrance during the coalition talks.But opposition-controlled councils in the big hung metros will face a daunting challenge because loose alliances, as opposed to coalitions, are a recipe for instability.Where workable programmes that promote service delivery and entrepreneurship are in place, it is imperative that the councils' new leaders do not attempt to reinvent the wheel, but work with provincial and national government to consolidate gains already made.If the ANC were to lose control of Johannesburg, for example, there would be no reason to seek to undo the work done by the incumbent Parks Tau's administration, which has helped the city improve its investment grade rating. The ANC, in turn, would be extremely unwise to adopt the role of spoilers.Crucial decisions on South Africa's sovereign credit rating are mere months away...