VBS-tainted Vhembe district gets new municipal manager

The cash-strapped Vhembe district municipality in Limpopo has finally appointed a new full-time municipal manager, almost a year since the revelation that the entity lost R300 million in the VBS Mutual Bank saga last year.

The new manager, Sylvia Ndou, was appointed during a special council sitting yesterday.

Ndou is not new to local governance.

She has a bachelor of administration degree from the University of Venda, a leadership in municipal development qualification from the University of Pretoria and a masters degree in public management from the University of Venda, among many other qualifications.

She worked as a financial aid clerk at the University of Venda, a court manager at the department of justice in Bloemfontein from December 2006 to August 2009, and was director of corporate services at the Makhado local municipality from September 2009 to August 2013.

She worked as senior manager, community services in Thulamela local municipality from August 2013 to September 2015 and general manager, corporate services at the Vhembe district municipality from January 2018 until the present.

She had been Vhembe’s acting municipal manager until her appointment yesterday on a full-time basis.

Ndou took over from Reuben Rambado, who was given a golden handshake of nearly R1 million by the municipality after his relationship with the council went sour.

This after the municipality invested R300 million of municipal funds in the collapsed VBS Mutual Bank, contravening the Municipal Finance Management Act.

“I am prepared to work with everyone to take this municipality to greener pastures,” Ndou said after her appointment.

“Dedication, commitment, hard work, transparency and teamwork are my five pillars for success.”

Ndou promised to put an end to protracted water shortages, address backlogs to road maintenance, enable house-to-house electrification and raise service delivery levels.

Ndou’s appointment was welcomed by both the Economic Freedom Fighters and the Democratic Alliance, which have been insisting on the position being permanently filled since last year.

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