A motion of no confidence brought by the ANC caucus against DA Mayor of Ekurhuleni Tania Campbell will be debated at an ordinary council meeting on October 26.
The Office of the Speaker has noted and confirmed receipt of the motion, brought forward on October 12.
In a statement from Lulama Mankabane, spokesperson for the Speaker, the metro said “it is important to note that the City of Ekurhuleni Standing Orders By-Law provides clear rules and criteria on the nature, form and notice period of motions, to which all parties must comply.
“The Programming Committee, which is representative of all parties in council, determines the business of the council in accordance with these rules.
“Except when the rules permit otherwise or when the Speaker has given his consent, each motion must be considered by the Programming Committee for admission onto the council agenda.
“As such, the Programming Committee will determine the admissibility of the motion based on the criteria, provided as per the standing orders of council.
“To ensure the integrity of the process and to ensure that all parties and councillors have an opportunity to participate in the work of the council in line with the constitutional dispensation, the office of the Speaker will not provide any further comment on the process until such a time that the committee has resolved on the motion and the business of council.”
Pledge
A statement from mayoral spokesperson Warren Gwilt on October 13 said Mayor Campbell’s office recognises that this motion still needs to serve in the Programming Committee ahead of the council meeting on October 26 and, as such, they will not comment on the matter until the committee has resolved on the motion.
“In the meantime, we remain steadfast in our commitment to serve all the residents of the City of Ekurhuleni,” Campbell said.
“Service delivery remains a priority for our multi-party coalition government.
“In my maiden State of the City Address I pledged: ‘Together we can build a united city, one Ekurhuleni. A city with a future brighter than its past.’
“This is my personal commitment to Ekurhuleni. We will not waiver on this pledge.”
ANC regional spokesperson Lesiba Mpya confirmed that the motion was submitted on October 12.
The Ekurhuleni multi-party coalition government initially comprised the DA, ActionSA, COPE, IFP and the Patriotic Alliance.
This motion comes barely a month after the mayor of Johannesburg, Mpho Phalatse, was ousted from office by a successful vote of no confidence from the ANC.
The ANC’s Dada Morero was voted in as mayor during the same sitting.
Sacked
The Ekurhuleni’s multi-party coalition government appointed new MMCs to its human settlements and health and social development portfolios on October 7.
The changes came after the Patriotic Alliance’s former MMC for Health and Social Development Bakang Lethoko and Human Settlements MMC Dino Peterson were sacked from their posts as a result of changes to the members of the multi-party coalition.
Charlotte Zitha took over as Health and Social Development MMC, while Mabekenyane Thamahane was appointed as the MMC of Human Settlements.
Zitha had a short stint as the MMC in the same position before she was removed earlier this year and replaced by Lethoko.
Patriotic Alliance leader Gayton McKenzie tweeted on October 7 that their councillors gracefully accepted the mayor’s decision.
“The DA mayor in Ekurhuleni has just removed, as it’s her right, the PA councillors from the mayoral committee.
“We want to thank her for the time our councillors served on her committee,” the tweet read.
According to mayoral spokesperson Warren Gwilt, the MMCs were removed as their political party is no longer part of the coalition.
He confirmed that COPE and the PA have been removed as coalition partners and the coalition has reverted to its initial configuration that was set up to run the city following the 2021 municipal elections.
The mayor’s office reiterated that the changes were made in the interest of improving service delivery and ensuring that the government continues to fulfil its mandate in the city.
Purging
The main opposition party, ANC, also weighed in with criticisms regarding the changes, saying the DA is purging the mayoral committee and replacing opponents with the coalition government’s political allies.
Before the submission of the motion, Mpya indicated that his party would consider submitting a motion of no confidence in the mayor earlier than expected, adding that the ANC was in talks with political parties that are not part of the coalition government to install a ‘stable’ revolutionary government that will serve the masses of the city.
“The ANC in Ekurhuleni condemns the DA’s desperate attempt to hang on to power in the city.
“With the mandate that our people have given us, we are now compelled to submit a motion of the people to remove the mayor and rescue the city from the unstable government.
“Service delivery has deteriorated while the DA-led coalition government ‘recklessly’ shuffles the mayoral committee to settle a petty political score with their coalition partners.
“We know our people decided not to give us a full mandate to run the city until we renew ourselves and stop our inward looking.
“But, they have given us the mandate to on their behalf to rise to the occasion and protect their interests.
“We humbly request the residents of Ekurhuleni to be patient during this period of political uncertainty,” said Mpya.
However, the multi-party coalition government said it has worked tirelessly to foster a culture of good governance and provide quality services over the past 11 months.
“The coalition government has made great in-roads at delivering on the promises made to residents in the State of the City Address earlier this year.
“Changes to the MMC portfolios are not impeding the progress of your ‘back to basics’ initiative,” said Gwilt.
Vacancy
The metro is by law required to create 10 MMCs portfolios, but with the recent changes made, the city has not yet filled the vacant post of MMC of Infrastructure Services.
This vacancy was created after the former MMC of Infrastructure Services, COPE’s Thembani Kalipa was removed.
This follows controversy over his COPE membership and alleged violation of Item 14 of the Code of Conduct for Councillors.
Gwilt said the position will be filled soon, adding that it is being looked after by MMC of City Planning Heather Hart, as city planning is closely linked to infrastructure.
The office of the mayor described the role of MMCs as the executive arm of a department and is required to ensure that their respective departments carry out their mandates.
Also Read: Ekurhuleni MMCs get the sack, no confidence motion submitted against mayor
