Acting Executive Mayor Khetiwe Ntombela has now spoken out for the first time on the trauma and pain of gender-based abuse and threats of violence allegedly by her politically influential subordinate, CFO Andile Dyakala. “I have been traumatised by these threats to the extent that I have been experiencing sleepless nights,” said Ntombela.

Ntombela confirmed Dyakala also faces investigation into a smear campaign to discredit his direct boss Municipal Manager Lucky Leseane, whose municipal clean-up and anti-corruption efforts have faced open resistance from Dyakala and his allies within ELM.

Dyakala, and his former sponsor and acting Municipal Manager Oupa Nkoane, are known as the “Gang of Two” within ELM due to their extreme and arrogant tactics in dealing with service providers, as well as legendary maladministration and gross management negligence. Both are linked to the destruction of ELM’s BXCSA smart meter programme, the best of its kind in Gauteng, with direct ELM revenue losses so far near R400 million. BXCSA has won a record default High Court judgment of R492 million against ELM – attaching its primary bank account on October 2.

Dyakala responded to allegations by making counter-claims of power abuse against Ntombela in an official ELM letter directed to Council Speaker Maipato “Chu-Chu Shoes” Tsokolibane, regarded as his staunch ally. He also in the letter confirmed the basic facts  exposed by an exclusive Vaalweekblad investigation and exposes into the matter over the past week.

The Golden Triangle Chamber of Commerce (GTCoC) has now also demanded that Dyakala be investigated for a dirty tricks and misinformation smear campaign allegedly waged against business leaders and journalists by Dyakala – using official council resources – since late 2018 until the present.

Leseane, said Mayor Notombela, has also laid an extremely serious internal complaint linked to both Dyakala and his key ally Speaker Tsokolibane, whose manipulation of council proceedings has stalled anti-corruption efforts agaginst Dyakala and Nkoane.

Ntombela also confirmed facts as published in a Vaalweekblad investigation resulting in her laying a formal charge against Dyakala at the Vanderbijlpark Police station on Sunday 18 October. Approached for comment on Dyakala’s unsuspended status, Municipal Manager Lucky Leseane would only say that investigations into complaints against Dyakala were continuing but that the CFO was still in place.

GTCoC Klippies Kritzinger has now also demanded that the Sedibeng ANC clarify a supposed media statement on social media by its Youth League in support of Dyakala and labelling the respected business activist and the Mayoral Business Forum “a criminal cartel”. The drama follows a virtual meeting at which the CFO was allegedly extremely abusive to a number of senior Gauteng Province  officials and Ntombela.

Dyakala also said in the official letter – in Vaalweekblad’s possession – that after the alleged virtual meeting incident he had received threatening phone calls telling him “not to interfere with the work of the acting Mayor”. But he admitted he had not reported these internally or to the Police as he was “afraid of the influence of acting Mayor Ntombela”, who is highly regarded in political circles.

Dyakala did not confirm or deny the prior official allegations against him in his letter to the ELM Speaker, but admitted he was under “stress” during the meeting allegedly because the acting Mayor had made an incorrect statement in the meeting which he as CFO was compelled to repudiate. In a distorted sentence he added he was “prepared to be shot by acting Mayor Ntombela” but provided no evidence that she had in fact threatened to shoot him or have him shot.

Dyakala also did not address subsequent social media posts and voice-notes by him on social media which have been interpreted as extremely abusive and threatening towards Ntombela. Dyakala is known to be vehemently opposed to the Mayoral Business Forum recently established and which will see ELM and business resources jointly harnessed to restore services and good governance.

Vaalweekblad has learned this follows another highly-abusive and threatening tirade in a recent online virtual meeting including Dyakala and in which he is accused of attacking and abusing not only Ntombela, but also Willy Bhila, the provincial Administrator set over ELM recently.

The alleged virtual meeting abuse is also regarded as gender-based violence and gross insubordination by Dyakala and several female ELM councillors have also complained privately about Dyakala’s threatening and abusive behaviour towards them over the years but no formal charges were laid. Dyakala is also alleged to have verbally abused Silas Zimu, a highly-regarded administrator and energy expert sent by Gauteng Province to work under Bhila, in the same virtual meeting.