Tshwane council meeting disrupted as councillors clash
Several videos depicting the councillors clashing were doing the rounds on social media on Thursday afternoon, acts which the Tshwane mayor labelled as "criminal".
Pandemonium broke out during Thursday’s Tshwane council meeting as members clashed.
In video footage posted to social media, mayor Cilliers Brink accuses the EFF of assaulting councillors while in another, EFF councillors in red can be seen clashing with their colleagues in the chambers at Tshwane House.
“I am [here] in Tshwane council where a meeting is violently disrupted by the EFF where they threatened councillors,” Brink is heard saying.
[WATCH] We will not be intimidated by EEF violent and criminal actions. We are staying in council. #TshwaneCouncil pic.twitter.com/bgoisL27h7
— Mayor Cilliers Brink (@tshwane_mayor) August 31, 2023
“We refuse to leave this place, we are democratically elected into this house,” Brink said.
He further said according to the new code of conduct a councillor who disrupts a council meeting is engaged in a criminal act and should be charged.
[WATCH] EFF disrupting Tshwane council with violence and general disorderly behaviour. This is a criminal offence in terms of the newly approved code of conduct of councillors. #TshwaneCouncil pic.twitter.com/38PHDfko07
— Mayor Cilliers Brink (@tshwane_mayor) August 31, 2023
Cooperative governance and traditional affairs minister Thembi Nkadimeng gazetted the new rules to restore order and clamp down on instability plaguing municipalities.
The regulations, issued in terms of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Amendment Act, stipulate that unlawful conduct by councillors will be persecuted.
The regulations include but are not limited to:
– councillors who disrupt municipalities,
– those who incite communities to participate in violent protests, and
– those who walk out from council meetings.
The newly announced code of conduct prohibits councillors from sabotaging meetings, including in portfolio committees, by walking out.
Regulation 5 provides that a councillor is in breach of the code if they vote in favour of or agree with a proposed resolution that conflicts with any legislation applicable to local government.
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