Limpopo councillors defy ANC directives

Angry councillors at the Thabazimbi local municipality in Limpopo elected a new mayor and a speaker on Monday against the directives of Limpopo ANC in Waterberg region.

The council elected Orapeleng Selokela as speaker and Judith Motsei-Mogapi as mayor. Both councillors were elected unopposed.

The election comes five days after Limpopo premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba, supported by the provincial executive committee (PEC), gave the council seven days to explain why she should not dissolve it.

Section 139 (1) (C) empowers the PEC to intervene if a municipality cannot or does not fulfil an obligation in terms of the constitution or legislation to approve a budget or any revenue. The seven-day ultimatum was set to end today.

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14 of 23 councillors attend meeting

But two days before the deadline, EFF and ANC councillors met at Thabazimbi Country Lodge where they elected Motsei-Mogapi and Selokelo.

The municipality is currently run under a coalition government of Thabazimbi Residents Association, ANC, EFF, Freedom Front Plus (FF+) and DA.

The meeting was attended by 14 of the municipality’s 23 councillors while the DA, the Thabazimbi Residents Association and FF+ did not attend.

EFF provincial chair Lawrence Mapoulo said: “Those who did not attend have sent apologies while others just didn’t pitch up. But we formed a quorum. That’s why we continued with the business of the day.”

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Mapoulo said the DA and the FF+ could not attend because “they were jealous to see Africans uniting”.

“Remember, the municipality is not run by the ANC or the DA. It is a coalition-run council. No-one is above the other,” he said.

“Therefore, there has never been any need for administration. The new leadership is going to govern.”

ANC spokesperson Seraka Mabeka said the party was not informed about the meeting, which he said was an insult to the Waterberg ANC regional executive committee and the party’s leadership in the province.

“We are going to make sure all our 11 ANC councillors who attended the meeting face the music,” he said.