EDITOR – In this time of austerity, the DA questions the decision by the chairperson of the Community and Emergency Services Committee (C&ES), ANC regional Chair Councillor Zandile Gumede, to make a last minute change of the venue for the monthly meeting from City Hall to the pricey Amakhosini Boutique Hotel, Morningside.
I, as deputy leader of the DA eThekwini caucus and member of the C&ES committee, expressed this concern after the last minute change.
We received an SMS the day before the meeting that it had been changed from City Hall to the Dockland Hotel. Two hours before the meeting was due to start, members receive another SMS saying it has now been moved to Amakhosini.
The Amakhosini charges R275 per person. I stated that there were at least 46 people present, that comes to a cost of R12 650. In a time where we are calling on residents to tighten the belt, it is indefensible that we are holding the meeting at such an expensive venue when the city has numerous conference rooms, not only at City Hall but at various other municipal buildings. This comes after the fiasco of the sea cruise that was stopped after an outcry by the DA and the public.
The DA calls on the Mayor James Nxumalo to put a stop to this extravagance and make it council policy that all committee meetings should be held at municipal venues that are available for free. We are in an economic crisis largely caused by the ANC led government, and it is time that government takes the lead in cutting down on unnecessary costs.
Councillor Martin Meyer
Deputy Caucus Leader
DA Ethekwini Caucus
