Fears have been raised that service delivery in the City of Ekurhuleni could be jeopardised following political instability in the council, which culminated in the collapse of the February monthly council meeting.

The meeting, held on February 26, was expected to debate and pass critical items necessary for the proper functioning of municipal departments. Instead, proceedings collapsed after the speaker of council, Dorah Mlambo, recently appointed MMC for Economic Infrastructure and Development, left the council benches to take the speaker’s seat and announce her resignation.

Her announcement was followed by shouting and singing in the chamber, an ANC caucus, and informal discussions with the council secretary and the head of the legislature. The meeting was ultimately called off, as it could not lawfully continue without a speaker presiding.

Among the key items left in limbo is the adjustment budget, which was due to be debated and approved to ensure uninterrupted service delivery in departments requiring additional funding.

“Politics aside, this is a serious issue that will have service delivery on the line. Certain departments urgently need more funding to continue delivering services, including roads, parks and energy,” said Clr Marius de Vos, expressing concern over the direction the city is taking.

“As things stand, if there is a lack of budget in any of these departments, they cannot deliver the much-needed services. Passing the adjustment budget at a later stage will also impact subsequent processes that follow council approval, meaning service delivery will be further delayed due to this political manoeuvring,” he added.

He explained that, in terms of the Municipal Structures Act, at least 72 hours’ notice must be given to convene a new meeting after the office of the Speaker becomes vacant.

In the interim, the city manager must preside over a meeting to elect a new Speaker or interim Speaker.

However, the city manager could not immediately assume the role, as proper notice had to be issued in compliance with legislative prescripts.

De Vos further criticised the situation as wasteful expenditure.

“It costs money to convene a council meeting. The money spent on catering and logistics for yesterday’s meeting has gone to waste,” he said.

Freedom Front Plus councillor Jennifer Glover echoed these concerns, attributing the collapse of the meeting to the Speaker’s resignation and the growing political instability following the fallout between the ANC and the EFF in council.

“The meeting was scheduled to address important matters that directly affect residents, matters requiring urgent oversight, accountability and decisive leadership,” said Glover.

“This incident reflects a governing party more focused on political reshuffling than on responsible governance. Proper planning and compliance with legislation are not optional, but fundamental obligations,” she added.

Compounded

Compounding the instability, the city is now also without a finance MMC following the abrupt resignation of Jongizizwe Dlabathi from the mayoral committee.

In his resignation letter, addressed to the ANC Ekurhuleni Regional Office and copied to regional and provincial leadership structures, Dlabathi stated that his decision to resign as both ANC regional secretary in Ekurhuleni and as a member of the mayoral committee was ‘unfortunate, but deeply considered’ and taken in the best interests of the organisation and its smooth functioning.

“I am humbled by the opportunity granted to serve and to contribute my skills and professional expertise in advancing organisational work, transformation, service delivery, development and ethical governance,” he wrote.

His resignation took effect on February 27.

Insiders described Dlabathi’s resignation as a further setback for the mayor and the city.

The developments follow Ekurhuleni Mayor Doctor Xhakaza’s recent overnight reshuffle of the mayoral committee, which reduced the number of positions held by coalition partner the EFF, triggering a fallout between the two parties.

The EFF subsequently withdrew from the governing coalition in the metro. Meanwhile, ActionSA declined an offer from the ANC to have its councillor, Xolani Khumalo, join the mayoral committee as MMC for Community Services and By-law Enforcement.

New MMCs

The mayor later filled three vacant positions in the mayoral committee: Human Settlements (Clr Nkgopotse Nsizwa Mekgwe), Community Services (Clr Siyabonga Mathews Moloi) and Economic Infrastructure and Development (Clr Dora Mlambo).

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