Fight for positions hinders Emalahleni mayor appointment

It is still not clear who will be the mayor of Emalahleni in Mpumalanga because the municipality has been without a leader for almost a month, while other municipalities in the province had filled the vacancies by last week.

It is alleged that the “fighting for the mayoral position was one of the obstacles hindering the process of appointing the new mayor”.

After the formation of the government of national unity, several municipalities in Mpumalanga were left without leaders after former mayors were deployed to parliament. Others accepted positions in the provincial legislature.

ALSO READ: Mashaba reveals ANC plans to dump Gwamanda as Joburg mayor

A source told The Citizen interviews have been concluded and a new mayor is expected to be announced today.

“He is a reputable leader who has the support of the business community and other relevant stakeholders in the province,” said the source.

The likely candidate

The Citizen can reveal Emalahleni MMC for development and spatial planning, Vusi Nhlapho, is likely to be the new mayor.

He will replace Leah Mabuza, who resigned on 2 July to join the provincial legislature.

Nhlapho has previously occupied several positions within the municipality, including being the ANC’s councillor and a PR councillor.

He is one of the leaders who have been groomed by the Congress of South African Students and the ANC Youth League. He is currently a member of the ANC’s provincial executive committee.

Another municipality that has not yet appointed a mayor is Dipaleseng, which recently adjourned the finalisation of the recruitment process that was supposed to be held on Tuesday last week.

Be that as it may, it is not clear why the municipality decided to delay the appointment of the mayor.

When asked why it took a long time for the two municipalities to appoint the mayors, SA Local Government Association Mpumalanga spokesperson Nokwanda Ndashe conceded the posts were still vacant but failed to give reasons.

“Emalahleni and Dipaleseng are in the process of appointing [the mayors], the municipalities can further elaborate on this,” said Ndashe.

Mpumalanga ANC spokesperson Sasekani Manzini did not respond to questions sent to her via WhatsApp.

ALSO READ: Thaba Chweu municipality faces criticism over 130 vacant positions

The municipalities that already filled the vacancies are:

• Bushbuckridge municipality has appointed Lydia Moroane-Zitha as an executive mayor to replace Sylvia Nxumalo, who is now representing the ANC in the National Council of Provinces. Moroane-Zitha has been a member of the National Assembly since last year, while she also served as the ANC Women’s League coordinator in the province for some time.

• Chief Albert Luthuli has appointed Mbuso Magubane as an executive mayor to replace Daniel Nkosi, who now serves at the provincial legislature as the chair of the portfolio committee for human settlements: cooperative governance and traditional affairs.

• Ehlanzeni district municipality’s new mayor is Terrence Shabangu who has been occupying a similar position in an acting capacity for some time.