The ANC has condemned the DA's walkout during a special council meeting to announce the new Mayor of Makana Municipality; however public service watchdog PSAM has lent weight to the DA's claim that Nomhle Gaga's appointment may be illegal and should be rescinded.
The ANC has condemned the DA's walkout during a special council meeting to announce the new Mayor of Makana Municipality; however public service watchdog PSAM has lent weight to the DA's claim that Nomhle Gaga's appointment may be illegal and should be rescinded.
During a press briefing shortly after the reshuffling of the municipality's mayoral committee and Gaga's appointment, secretary of the ANC's Sarah Baartman region Scara Njadayi said, "We are condemning this conduct of the opposition here.
When they see that the tide is against them they take a decision consciously or unconsciously to march out of Council because their candidate happened not to be popular here.
"They decide, 'no let's march out' because they know they are going to be defeated by the ANC."
Njadayi said some opposition members hadn't bothered to come to the meeting because they knew the ANC would close ranks and unite behind whomever they had recommended for deployment to the position.
Referring to the secret ballot proposed by the DA at the meeting, Njadayi said ANC councillors at the meeting had suggested there was no need for a secret ballot.
"This is because they had been apprised by the organisation. They were taken into confidence around this particular matter and there were political reasons which were outlined to them as to why we are reshuffling here in Makana," he said.
Responding to Grocott's Mail's question whether the reshuffle was implemented to target certain councillors, Njadayi said the move was not intended to address political issues within Council's ANC caucus.
"We are able to deal with those issues without strictly applying deployment, redeployment or reshuffling. Politically there is stability in the organisation in Makana and there is stability as well in the caucus of the ANC here," he said.
Njadayi said local ANC councillors are able to debate issues, and disagree, but in the end they were guided by the principle of democratic centralism, which dictates that the majority view prevails.
"When that majority prevails in the caucus it becomes the position of the organisation."
Local government watchdog PSAM, however, says if allegations the Democratic Alliance has made about how Makana's new Mayor was appointed are true, the Council's Speaker should declare her incumbency null and void.
In a statement issued on Sunday 30 August, the Democratic Alliance in Makana Municipality said it was seeking legal advice following the election of Councillor Nomhle Gaga as Mayor in a Special Council meeting on Friday 28 August.
The party walked out of the meeting in protest after the Speaker of the Council, Rachel Madinda Isaac, permitted the election of Gaga to proceed without a secret ballot.
In its statement the DA said this cast doubt over the legality of Gaga’s appointment as Mayor.
"The DA will not partake in proceedings where the law is treated with such contempt," said the statement.
Grocott's Mail had already reported on the ANC's party decision, confirmed the previous night, to put forward Gaga as their Mayoral choice.
The DA claims the Speaker ignored the advice of the acting municipal manager "who confirmed that a secret ballot must be held when there is more than one nomination, according to the law".
According to the DA, two names were put forward: DA leader in the Makana Council Les Reynolds (DA) and Gaga.
The vote was done by a show of hands.
"It is clear that the ANC were terrified that their very own councillors would vote for a DA Mayor," the DA statement said. "Why else would they not allow a secret ballot?
"The DA will now seek legal advice to ensure that the Makana Council follows the law. We believe that the decision to appoint the new Mayor should be set aside and the process reconvened."
The Grahamstown-based Public Service Accountability Monitor said the correct procedure for electing a municipal office bearer, according to the Municipal Structures Act 117 of 1998, is as follows:
"If more than one candidate is nominated, a vote must be taken at the meeting by secret ballot."
Local Government Researcher Thabani Mdlongwa in response to questions from Grocott's Mail and replying on behalf of PSAM, said according to the law, each councillor present at the meeting may cast one vote; and the person presiding must declare elected the candidate who receives a majority of the votes.
"PSAM calls upon the MEC to investigate the serious allegations made against the Speaker which appear to contravene the code of conduct applicable to councillors as contained in the Municipal Systems Act 32 of 2000," Mdlongwa said.
"If the allegations made by the DA in their press statement are true the following should take place: First, the Speaker should declare the Council decision taken on Friday 28th August a nullity and of no force or effect. Second, the Council should urgently reconvene a sitting to elect a Mayor in accordance with the Municipal Structures Act.
"It is high time that the councillors within Makana municipality follow the law and where they fail to do so there should be real consequences.
"Given the current climate and allegations and the fact that this municipality remains under administration the MEC needs to act urgently," Mdlongwa said. "We commend the acting MM’s efforts to have the law complied with in vain."
At the time of publishing, no response had yet been received from Gaga, or Madinda-Isaac.
sue@grocotts.co.za
*In the previous version of this article it was stated that the meeting was closed to the public and media. In fact, the reporter arrived shortly after the DA walked out of the meeting.
