City of Joburg considering legal action against Mashaba, says mayor Makhubo

City of Johannesburg (CoJ) mayor Geoff Makhubo says the city will move swiftly to abide by and implement Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s recommendations on Herman Mashaba’s tenure as the city’s mayor.

Mkhwebane, during a briefing on Monday, found that:

• Mashaba unlawfully and irregularly entered the procurement space and solicited free services from Lephatsi Financial Services and whether such amounted to a conflict of interests.
• The city improperly or irregularly appointed Moses Metileni to the position of executive director: housing, without following due processes.
• The city improperly or irregularly appointed David Tembe to the position of chief of the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) without following due processes.
• The city improperly or irregularly appointed KPMG to conduct investigations in various departments within the city for clearly different assignments which would require different expertise, without advertising the tender as required by the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) and supply chain management regulations.

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Among others, Mkhwebane recommended that the city manager, within 30 working days from the date of the report, present it to the MEC for cooperative governance in Gauteng for a decision to address all irregular expenditure incurred as a result of maladministration and improper conduct highlighted in her report.

Makhubo said in a statement that the city would consider possible legal proceedings against Mashaba.

“The findings by the public protector are welcome and begin to complete the picture of how the city, during the previous administration, witnessed a peak in irregular expenditure reaching an all-time high of R2.4 billion. Lack of consequence management and impunity were the order of the day.

“We have always maintained that the rhetoric and PR of the former mayor were not in sync with the reality and objective facts on the city’s performance and stability. People were appointed to serve the master and not the residents of Johannesburg. The residents have had to pay salaries to incompetent and unsuitable candidates who were placed at the centre of service delivery in the city,” he said.

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However, Mashaba said he would take Mkhwebane to court to review her report and seek a costs order.

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