You will be removed, MEC warns Musina and Makhado councillors

“The comrades are playing with their positions, and they will be removed,” warned Limpopo MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Basikopo Makamu. He was responding to ANC councillors’ boycotting council meetings in an effort to block decisions from being made.

Last week saw yet another meeting of the Musina Municipal Council collapse. The problem appears to be a rift between two factions within the ANC. One faction, led by Chief Whip Fistos Mafela, wants the meeting to proceed, so that the problem of exorbitant salaries for senior officials can be addressed. The other faction, which includes Mayor Godfrey Mawela, seems reluctant to tackle the problems they have created and takes a rather spineless approach instead by boycotting meetings. The absence of these councillors means that no quorum is present.

The issue at hand is the overpayment of senior officials within the Musina Municipality. When the municipality appointed officials, including the municipal manager, it was done on salary scales not applicable to a small municipality such as Musina. Both the minister responsible for local government and the MEC pointed this out, but the council chose to ignore instructions to rectify the matter. Over the past few months, pressure has mounted on the municipality to adjust the salary scales and require the officials to pay back the excess money.

The meeting on 23 July collapsed when only 12 of the 24 councillors attended. It was postponed to 30 July, but again, no quorum was present. The same thing happened on 14 August and last week, on 20 August.

During a press conference at the Ranch Hotel in Polokwane last week, MEC Makamu announced that the Thabazimbi Municipality would be placed under administration. He made clear that other municipalities, such as Musina and Makhado, must get their houses in order and prioritise service delivery. Last month, the Makhado Municipality also had to deal with internal squabbles among ANC representatives. In that case, one faction did not want to appoint the chief financial officer permanently.

In Musina, tensions have begun to flare, with many calling for the council to be dissolved. A group calling themselves the Kha Tuwe Ro Neta community forum wrote letters to the MEC and the Premier, urging them to intervene. In the letter, the absence of the councillors, along with the often flimsy excuses used to explain their absence, was discussed. The group members apparently tracked down some of the absent councillors and found them either at drinking spots or relaxing at home.

The group also criticised the interference of ANC regional secretary Rudzani Ludere, who had previously instructed ANC councillors in Makhado to boycott meetings, but most ignored him. In Musina, however, he seems to have more influence.

Last Wednesday (14 August), Ludere was present when the ANC caucus in Musina met. From what could be established, all ANC councillors were present during the morning’s caucus meeting. However, when the council meeting took place that afternoon, it was boycotted by several ANC members.

One concerned resident of Musina, Ms Geraldine Norton, said they had had enough of the silly games played by the public representatives elected to serve the people. “These people are now playing mind games. We elected them to be our representatives, but it is now clear that they are there for their self-interest. We have no doubt that these councillors who have been missing council meetings are also conflicted. They are all benefitting from the corrupt deals taking place at the municipality. What else could be the reason for not attending these very important meetings?” she said.

She added that the actions of these councillors were seriously disrupting service delivery. Several planning meetings could not take place, and incidents of violence have also been reported. “We are tired of these games, and we are calling on our provincial government to do the right thing and put the municipality under administration,” she said.

Date:23 August 2024

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019. He currently writes on a freelance basis, covering human rights issues, court news and entertainment.

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