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ActionSA candidate fielded as Tshwane speaker, after party terminates councillor’s membership
Meanwhile, opposition parties criticised ActionSA for Nkele Molapo's dismissal.
A general view at the City of Tshwane council meeting on 24 November 2021, in Pretoria. Picture: Gallo Images/Beeld/Deaan Vivier
The Democratic Alliance (DA) and its coalition partners has decided to field an ActionSA councillor for speaker position in the City of Tshwane.
The Tshwane metropolitan municipality has convened a council sitting and is expected to elect a new speaker on Monday afternoon.
ActionSA’s Kholofelo Morodi will be nominated by the multi-party coalition partners, while the African National Congress (ANC) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) will reportedly back African Transformation Movement (ATM) councillor Mncedi Ndzwanana for council speaker.
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The speaker position became vacant earlier this month when former Congress of the People (Cope) member Dr Murunwa Makwarela was elected executive mayor.
Makwarela has since resigned both as mayor and PR councillor, after submitting what has since been declared a fraudulent rehabilitated certificate for his insolvency.
His resignation leaves the city without a speaker and mayor.
The nomination of Morodi comes as ActionSA announced that it had terminated the membership of Nkele Molapo. The party accused Molapo of “coordinating with some of our councillors who do not support the multi-party coalition’s decision to support the vote for a new coalition mayor in the City of Tshwane”.
Molapo is the wife of former ActionSA member Abel Tau, who left the party last year.
Polygraph tests
It also comes after the party conducted polygraph tests to try identify the councillors who voted, via secret ballot, to ensure Makwarela’s election as Tshwane mayor.
The metro previously could not elect a new speaker after last week’s council sitting failed to reach a quorum.
Councillors from the DA and its multi-party coalition partners – including Action SA, Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) and Freedom Front Plus (FF+) – did not pitch up for the meeting.
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In a statement, ActionSA explained that it decided to get rid of Molapo after an investigation found she had shared internal party information with Tau.
There was also an accusation Molapo bullied Tshwane caucus members in an attempt, which, according to ActionSA, to destabilise the party.
Molapo has decided to approach the courts to challenge her dismissal.
‘Victimised’
During Monday’s council sitting, ANC councilor Aaron Maluleka slammed ActionSA for terminating Molapo’s membership.
“The issue of councillor Nkele Molapo is a constitutional matter. When the DA and ActionSA subject their members to abuse on party matters we can’t interfere on that, but when they’re fickle with council it’s our business.”
Another ANC councillor, Tlangi Mohale, echoed the same sentiments.
“This council must entertain the court submissions from the lawyers of Ms Nkele Molapo. There are people that are sitting there who we know have themselves failed the lie detector test, but they are [here in council].
“A woman who has passed the test is being chased away because she has decided to be in a relationship with someone else,” she said.
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Meanwhile, an EFF councillor argued that the polygraph tests were unconstitutional.
“Immediately after they vote they get victimised by their parties and we are told not to enter that space because it is a party issue,” EFF councilor, Obakeng Ramabodu said.
Ramabodu asked City Manager Johann Mettler, who is presiding the council meeting, to ensure that the city protects councillors after voting processes.
“A certain party decided that its members voted otherwise… how do they know? So we need to come with a solution because we won’t allow [such],” he added.
Following repeated disruptions, Mettler adjourned the council sitting until 1pm.
