NELSON MANDELA BAY - TENSIONS ARE MOUNTING FOR COUNCIL TO ELECT A NEW NMB MAYOR

The Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro are calling for the council to have a sitting that will elect a new mayor.

This follows a letter written to the metro where COGTA has given Nelson Mandela Bay council seven days to respond to the recommendation to place it under administration.

COGTA MEC Xolile Nqatha attributed this move to the failure by the municipality to fill the vacant post of the Executive Mayor and for the appointment of an unqualified official to act in the position of Municipal Manager.

AIC Councilor Tshonono Buyeye has been acting mayor since the ousting of UDM councillor Mongameli Bobani in December.

Implementation of Section 139 (1)(c)

Nqatha says should the metro fail to respond in seven days, he will make recommendations to the Executive Council of the province.

Invoking of Section 139(1)(c) deals with dissolving the council, appointing an administrator to run the municipality until elections are held within three months. The DA’s Nqaba Bhanga is opposed to this decision, saying it may further fuel corruption in the metro.

“We are not going to allow the provincial government to take over this metro because we know that all they want to do is continue with their looting and steal money. I have written a letter to the Speaker that there be a council meeting next week to appoint a mayor. If she doesn’t allow council to sit, we will take them to court. We need proper government in this metro, not to be placed under administration; we will never allow that.”

EFF’s Ngawethu Madaka is also opposed to the implementation of Section 139 (1)(c).

“We know how the ANC operates; they come into a metro and they steal and run that metro. We will not allow this here; we will never let them come and steal in this metro because that’s what they want to do. We will fight this until the very end.”

ANC regional spokesperson JP Pretorius says the party admits to the ill-discipline of some of their councilors. He added that they are not opposed to the metro being placed under administration.

“As the ANC in the region, we obviously will look at the best interest of the people of the metro. Ideally, we would want an ANC mayor and the institution to be restored and stabilised, for our councilors and deployees working with us. But if needs be, that the province wants to go the route of the administration side of things and the dissolving council, then as the ANC in this region we totally support that.”

Politics within the council mostly affect service delivery and residents say the Metro is run down.

“Roads and things aren’t as nice as before, especially when you go to the railway station. As far as I know, it used to be a beautiful place. Since DA left, you can see the building is cracking, nothing is being refurbished,” says one resident.

“Do such things exist because you hear about it but you don’t see anything? I feel like something needs to be done about this thing because people just talk and there’s no action.”

Concerns over acting Mayor 

In his statement, MEC Nqatha also raised concerns about the appointment of Mr Mvuleni Mapu as the acting Municipal Manager. Mapu currently holds a position below that of managers who account to the Municipal Manager.

He was voted in during a virtual meeting held in June with 31 councilors.

Political analyst Ongama Mtimka says placing the metro under administration is a solution to its problems.

“I can understand why there would be anxiety about a provincial intervention. We have seen that what the ANC foregrounds as the main issue is usually hiding an underlying agenda, which is not as noble as what is foregrounded; so that is understood. But I am strongly supportive of an idea that says they have been given a chance to try as much as they can to have a local solution.”

The DA and the EFF have indicated that should council fail to sit and elect a new mayor next Tuesday, they will take the matter to court.

via - SABC