A dispute over proof of residence letters sparked heated exchanges at last week’s council meeting, with opposition councillors questioning why the matter was excluded from the agenda.

The dispute follows a dramatic walkout by opposition parties on January 29, when PR councillors argued they should be allowed to issue proof of residence letters.

At present, only ward councillors are permitted to issue these letters in the municipality.

Opposition parties accused KwaDukuza council speaker Dolly Govender of unfairly restricting the powers of

PR councillors and sidelining the opposition. They argued that a written directive from the KZN department of co-operative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) MEC, Thulasizwe Buthelezi, instructed the municipality to extend this responsibility to PR councillors as part of their official duties.

However, Govender said she had received the opposite instruction from the South African Local Government Association (Salga). According to her, Salga maintained that current legislation does not clearly define the roles of PR councillors in this regard. The association also warned that issuing proof of residence letters could be open to abuse if not properly regulated, citing challenges in other municipalities.

Salga further advised that it does not support political parties issuing such letters and recommended that the responsibility remain with ward councillors and designated municipal officials.

“I wrote to both Cogta and Salga. Salga maintained its stance and I am waiting for the Cogta MEC to respond or send a representative to explain the issue to council,” said Govender.

But opposition councillors were not satisfied. Commie Ntleko accused the speaker of downplaying the importance of the matter.

“Even the letter you are speaking about, you only wrote it yesterday. I personally heard you telling an official that there’s nothing important about this item,” said Ntleko.

DA caucus leader Privi Makhan called for the matter to be formally placed on the agenda at the next sitting and for all relevant correspondence to be tabled before council.

“That will include the letter to the MEC. We feel you, as the speaker, are not respecting opposition councillors,” said Makhan.

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