Members of the opposition parties shout at Mayor Cilliers Brink during the Tshwane Council Meeting on 25 July, 2024 in Pretoria, South Africa. It is reported that the meeting was chaotic because the ANC and EFF councilors refused to let Mayor Cilliers Brink speak. (Photo by Gallo Images/Beeld/Deaan Vivier)
City of Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink stopped short of celebrating the withdrawn motion of no confidence against him, instead calling on all politicians to be accountable for their actions, not just him.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) councillor again argued on Friday the motivation behind his attempted removal was “business interests with links to the ANC”, especially in the municipality’s waste management.
This follows a chaotic and unfruitful council meeting on Thursday that saw speaker Mncedi Ndzwanana adjourn the meeting after Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) regional chair Obakeng Ramabodu escalated proceedings, shouting, “I’m craving to moer a Boer – I want the blood of an Afrikaner!“
The African National Congress’ (ANC) motion was withdrawn later that night.
Speaking to eNCA, Brink said the ANC was within its rights to put forward a motion of no confidence against him but it needed to be debated in council, and all people in power should be held accountable for their actions, not just him.
“Anybody who’s been elected to public office must be held accountable and if there is a motion of no confidence that motion must be debated and the reasons for and against must be properly given – that is part of democratic accountability,” Brink said.
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“What concerned us about this motion of no confidence, the first one since this mayoral administration for the past 16 months, was that it seemed to be driven by business interests with links to the ANC.”
The mayor said councillors who would have voted for his removal (had it come to a vote) should be held accountable for their actions.
Brink urged performance standards be done for waste removal contractors, including having vehicles less than eight years old, trucks having tracking devices and eNatis documentation that is not fraudulent.
Contractors linked to the ANC, he said, would lose out if there was to be more regulation.
Last week, the DA said ANC leaders had private business interests that would lose out as it clamps down on “deep-rooted networks of corruption that have undermined service delivery for far too long”.
ALSO READ: DA believes ANC’s bid to oust Brink motivated by private business interests
