A Grahamstown councillor who claims he was appointed and illegally dismissed as municipal manager plans to take the embattled local municipality to court.
A Grahamstown councillor who claims he was appointed and illegally dismissed as municipal manager plans to take the embattled local municipality to court.
Council named councillor Paul Notyawa as their preferred candidate for the post in a confidential meeting at the city hall on 12 March.
Cooperative Governance MEC Fikile Xasa was required to approve the appointment.
In a letter to Makana Municipality executive mayor Zamuxolo Peter, tabled at an ordinary council meeting on 8 May, Xasa said he was not satisfied that Notyawa's appointment was in line with the provisions of Section 54 of the Amendment Act.
Notyawa had hinted in a previous interview that he would take legal action against the municipality.
His lawyers have since written to Council pointing out a number of legal processes that were not followed, according to a well placed source.
Cooperative Governance MEC Fikile Xasa was supposed to grant or decline concurrence on the matter within 14 days after receiving the file from Council, according to the source.
Failure of the MEC to do that within the stipulated period means that he has to go to court and apply for a declaratory order.
"He can't just write a letter after that period as he did," the source said. I
n the letter the lawyers have called for Council to give Notyawa a letter of appointment, as the resolution taken by Council still stands.
The source says Council has not responded and Notyawa's lawyers are preparing to take the matter to court.
From the outset the prospect of Notyawa's appointment was dealt a heavy blow by reports that senior ANC officials had ordered him to withdraw his candidacy for the top job.
This happened only a day after Council named him as their preferred candidate, and was reportedly because of his alleged ties to the United Front.
Notyawa recently broke his silence and voiced his dissatisfaction about how the whole process was handled.
He said he had read about his appointment and subsequent dismissal in the media.
Responding to questions, Notyawa said, "I see it as a story now and again. I have been employed in the public domain without actually getting correspondence of any kind."
Notyawa said the same process had been followed by Xasa in dismissing him.
Speaking to Grocott's Mail late yesterday Xasa's spokesperson Mamnkeli Ngam said he would be in a better position to respond today (Friday).
anele@grocotts.co.za
