The Cogta MEC wants the J.B. Marks council to deal with serious allegations of mismanagement within the municipality.
Mr. Gordon Kegakilwe, the MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs in North West, sent a letter to the speaker on 19 November 2019.
In it, he asked for a report on the municipal funds that a lawyer is holding in trust.
This money comes from a rental agreement where a piece of the Eleazer farm, owned by the municipality, was rented out for mining.
Kegakilwe cites the report.
The attorney had reportedly received a telephonic instruction from the mayor to make a payment to two NGOs.
He was requested to deposit the amount into the bank account of a catering company.
“The attorneys confirmed that the executive mayor had indicated that the money would be treated as a loan and refunded to the council.
Last week, Victor Boqo, the mayoral spokesperson, said the money had already been refunded. According to him, the money was paid in the form of a loan, which was reportedly settled in full.
When the Herald spoke to the owner of the catering company, however, she had no recollection of the money.
She said her company had never done any business for that amount.
“It is the view of the department that the mayor has contravened the law and, as such, the council must appoint a committee to investigate the breach of the code of conduct … and resolve on the matter,” said Kegakilwe in his letter.
The letter also refers to money from the trust fund that was spent on sending officials to the Durban July earlier this year.
In the letter, Kegakilwe states that this, too, warrants investigation.
“Whether there was any instruction by the Municipal Manager (MM), whether there was provision within the municipal budget for this trip, and if there was any value for money.
It must also be investigated if officials who went to KwaZulu-Natal through payments from the trust account did submit any reports on their engagements [sic]” he said in his letter.
When the Herald first reported on the lavish Durban July trip in August this year, the municipal manager, Lebu Ralekgetho, stated that a full report on the matter would be served at the next ordinary council meeting.
He previously stated that the excursion to the Durban July was part of an extended trip to KZN.
This, he said, was done in line with the city’s strategy of positioning itself as a mecca for sports, arts, and culture and establishing J.B. Marks as the first-choice destination for the sports camps of international and national teams, and arts and cultural events.
Thus far, no report has served before the city council.
Chris Hattingh, the Democratic Alliance (DA) Northwest constituency head in J.B. Marks, stated that the party is concerned and outraged that the speaker had withheld an urgent letter from the MEC, addressed to council, for longer than 10 days.
“Withholding important information from council members, especially where it has financial and legal implications, has now become common practice in the J.B. Marks Municipality.
“The manner in which the speaker deals with the directive addressed to the council confirms this practice and reinforces perceptions that there are individuals who increasingly manage public finances in a manner reminiscent of a criminal cartel with a total absence of accountability to the council and the general public,” he said in a statement.
So far, two council meetings have gone by since the letter was sent to the municipality, without the issues raised by Kegakilwe being discussed. According to Boqo, the office of the mayor had not received the letter in question. (He confirmed that the municipality had received the letter on 09 December)
“It is shocking as to where and how did the DA have it before we do? [sic]” Boqo said.
According to the Cogta spokesperson, Dineo Thapelo the municipality had yet to respond on the issue of investigating the mayor’s conduct. She confirmed that the letter was indeed sent to the municipality/
“Should the council not sit to resolve the matter, the MEC can institute a forensic investigation against the mayor, in terms of Section 106 of the Municipal System Act,” Thapelo said.
The Hawks had previously confirmed that an investigation into the funds was underway.
