Mashaba, ANC Joburg embroiled in City Power spat

Another war of words has broken out between the ANC and DA Joburg mayor Herman Mashaba. This time the spat is over Mashaba’s latest threat to dissolve Joburg utility City Power’s board.

According to the ANC, Mashaba on Monday instructed the new Joburg city manager, Ndivho Lukhwareni, to dissolve the City Power board.

The ANC claimed on Tuesday that Mashaba wants to dissolve the board because he wants to influence tenders at the utility.

“It has come to our attention that Mashaba is putting pressure on metro boards to fire senior managers because they were employed by the previous administration of the ANC,” ANC Greater Johannesburg region spokesperson Jolidee Matongo said.

“The ANC understands that mayor Mashaba has instructed the board of City Power, led by struggle veteran Frank Chikane, to suspend the utility’s managing director Sicelo Xulu.

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“Mashaba threatened to dissolve the board if this doesn’t happen.”

Matongo said the board was now in the unenviable position to either comply with Mashaba’s instruction and suspend Xulu, or risk being dissolved for refusing to suspend Xulu. Matongo said rumours that Mashaba is in debt also fuelled suspicions.

“Mashaba has pretended to be on a corruption-busting mission, but his extraordinary interest in City Power tenders reveals his true interests,” Matongo said.

Reacting to the ANC claims, the director of communications at the mayor’s office, Tony Taverna-Turisan, said Mashaba finds it exceptional that the ANC would take interest in the city’s investigation into tenders of City Power authorised under their administration.

He said when the mayor entered office he declared corruption public enemy number one.

“The fact that this makes the ANC so uncomfortable is telling,” Taverna-Turisan said.

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