ANC demands Msimanga take responsibility for GladAfrica scandal

The ANC has demanded that Tshwane metro mayor Solly Msimanga take full accountability for the irregular expenditure in the GladAfrica deal.

The party made the demand after the auditor-general found the contract awarded to engineering consultancy GladAfrica was irregular.

The party said findings by the auditor-general report confirmed that the EFF-DA coalition government had “institutionalised corruption” in the municipality.

“The AG’s report, which includes the R317 million already paid to consultancy firm GladAfrica, is damning on the outgoing mayor Solly Msimanga and the City Manager Moeketsi Mosola, who have been playing a blame game instead of taking responsibility and falling by [sic] their own swords.”

The party said they had raised concerns in August 2018 on the city outsourcing their multibillion-rand capex expenditure, which was at the heart of service delivery.

“The money for the construction of roads, water and electricity infrastructure, the building of community infrastructure and other key service delivery-related infrastructure is catered for from this budget.”

As a result, service delivery collapsed in the city, earning the city the title of worst-performing municipality according to the Quality of Life Survey in 2017/18, the ANC claimed.

The party want Msimanga held accountable and alleged his resignation was nothing but the Democratic Alliance allowing him to get off scot-free “without facing the grand theft of state coffers under his watch”.

The EFF-DA coalition has collapsed, according to the ruling party, who say they do not have faith in Msimanga’s leadership.

“As the ANC we have to ask that if such theft could take place in just one financial year, and service delivery could grind to a halt in the city under Msimanga’s questionable leadership, we only wonder what would happen should he be given the reigns to lead a province such as Gauteng.”

Msimanga blames Mosola, accusing him of withholding vital information related to the contract from the mayoral committee.

He said the appointment of GladAfrica was meant to be done by a panel of service providers and the complete price of the tender was never truthfully reported to the mayoral committee by Mosola.

Msimanga has announced he will step down as mayor next month to focus on his role as Gauteng premier candidate.

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