DEAR Editor,-
I humbly request clarity on the manner in which your reporter(s) contacted me on my alleged response that I did not want to comment (SCH September 9, Former MM gated on full pay).
I take the South Coast Herald as a serious publication, having earned its colours for reporting on matters truthfully and without fear or favour. Any reporter or journalist on your payroll, I believe, needs to jealously guard against any temptation of short-term goals, but rather strive to report on matters or write an article that would not cast aspersions on the quality of your news team.
Regrettably that has not been the case – at least on this matter, as the story in question refers to me, yet I was not contacted or given an opportunity to comment.
Worse still, a falsehood is advanced that I preferred not to comment, yet there is no such thing. To prove that I was not contacted, I hereby extend an invitation that, together with your reporters involved in the story, we undergo a lie detector test if need be. I can foot the bill from my own pocket.
Had I been genuinely contacted, I would have indicated that what keeps me busy at my office in Ezinqoleni is attending to winding-down operations:
· Preparation and submission of financial statements and performance reports to the Auditor-General for the new audit cycle;
· Overseeing the audit process, making sure that information requested by the auditors from former Ezinqoleni employees is submitted within three working days;
· Certifying that invoices submitted for work done before August 9 are indeed reflective of services rendered and thereafter authorising payment of such;
· Regular liaison with MM Max Mbili for clarity on various matters, as part of a smooth handing over process;
· Closure of Ezinqoleni bank account and transfer of funds to Ray Nkonyeni. Please note I am handing over a viable institution with a liquidity ratio of more than 1:5 (a rare feature in the public sector); and
· Transfer of records to make sure that every file handed over to Ray Nkonyeni is properly referenced and documented.
All these activities are consuming much of my time in office and in terms of my projections, the intensity of operations will subside towards the end of October (conclusion of the audit process). From the end of October onwards I will evaluate my options going forward as I would have done anyway, with or without the amalgamation factor as my contract with Ezinqoleni (and by extension Ray Nkonyeni) comes to an end in 2017.
I trust that this clarifies the matter and would appreciate it if the Herald sets the record straight.
MANDLA MABECE
Ezinqoleni Municipality
Former Municipal Manager
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