Concerned community members in Maruleng have requested the Office of the Public Protector to extremely urgently investigate the irregular appointments of officials in the Maruleng Local Municipality.
This followed after the municipality illegally convened a special council meeting last Thursday in Mpumalanga and resolved to appoint Charles Malema as Chief Financial Officer and Advocate Khomotso Malatji as Director of Cooperative Services.
The appointments were made despite a legally convened Council sitting on March 29 having taken a decision that the position of Chief Financial Officer must be re-advertised and the court case must go ahead in the case of the Director Corporate Services because both candidates were not suitable with regard to qualifications and experience and other applicants who were overlooked were more suitable.
Read: Maruleng community members demand a new committee
A Special Council meeting at the Blyde Aventure Resort in Mpumalanga was convened without 24 hours notice as per Rules of Order, outside the municipal area and in contravention of the Rules of order that no council resolution can be rescinded within three months.
The concerned community members made up of opposition parties, Chamber of Commerce and ordinary members of the community are also demanding that the irregular decision to appoint the two officials be rescinded, the Curriculum Vitae’s of all applicants be tabled in Council and that councillors be observers during the interviews.
The Hoedspruit Chamber of Commerce already has an investigation underway through the President’s and Limpopo Premier’s office on a number of other outstanding issues in the municipality. Municipal spokesperson, John Seokoma said the final decision on the appointment of Section 57 officials lies with the office of the MEC for Co-operative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs, Jerry Ndou. “The names of the preferred candidates have been sent to the office of the MEC Ndou for decision of whether to appoint them or not,” said Seokoma.
