SPARKS flew at last week’s monthly council meeting when the mayor and a DA councillor went head to head in a name calling incident.
The argument ensued after DA ward 17 councillor, Tracey Butler, described the city as “aerotrash” instead of and aerotropolis, while outlining some of the major problems facing Ekurhuleni. According to a statement issued by the DA, Butler was merely reporting what businesses in the area were saying about the state of the city.
In response to Butler’s report, Ekurhuleni mayor, Clr Mondli Gungubele, described anyone who has the impression that the metro was falling apart as having a “disillusioned state of mind”.
“I propose a challenge to have an audit conducted on the city of Ekurhuleni and the statistics from the audit will prove that you are in a disillusioned state of mind, as the metro continues to deliver,” Gungubele said.
The mayor referred to an incident where the DA went to Tsakane to deliver water but upon arrival found there was already water in the township.
“So therefore I would like to forgive you (Butler) for your ignorance.”
As a result of this, the DA says the mayor owes Butler a public apology for labelling her ignorant.
“It is an absolute disgrace that the Speaker of the House, Patricia Khumalo, allowed the mayor to insult a councillor in this manner while she ruled words the opposition used to describe the state of the city, such as ‘trash’ and ‘rubbish’, out of order. What is worse, the mayor’s remarks were made to an individual in contrast to the DA’s, which were aimed at the ruling party and not a particular person,” the DA’s Fortune Mahano said in the statement.
It became chaos in the council meeting after the mayor’s response, with DA members requesting that Khumalo ask Gungubele to retract his statement.
“Madam Speaker, we as the DA feel that the mayor’s statement was insulting towards the councillor and therefore we ask that the statement be withdrawn,” DA chief whip, Clr André du Plessis said.
Khumalo refused, stating that Butler also used insulting words in the house, which she should also retract before the mayor could be expected to do anything.
“Councillor Butler used the word ‘trash’ to describe the city, which is also insulting. Such words cannot be used in this house,” Khumalo said.
The mayor concluded by defending the word ignorant, stating that it was not a negative word at all “but merely means that one has no knowledge of certain information”.
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