The African National Congress (ANC) Chief Whip in Ekurhuleni, Jongizizwe Dlabathi, has outlined the reasons behind bringing a motion of no confidence against the Ekurhuleni Mayor, Tania Campbell.
Wednesday’s motion follows a decision by the High Court in Johannesburg to declare last month’s removal of the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) Mpho Phalatse as Joburg Mayor as unlawful, unconstitutional and invalid.
The court also set aside the election of the ANC’s Dada Morero as the new mayor.
Dlabathi says the ANC believes that the DA’s Campbell is not fit for her position.
“It is not so much about the numbers; it is about the issues that we are putting to justify why we believe strongly that the current executive mayor is not fit for purpose. We are not worried about the numbers and that is why the motion is before council for all political parties to assess the issues that we are bringing. Whether we lose, at least we would have put the issues forward and exposed the inefficiencies in Ekurhuleni.”
The ANC has questioned her capability to run the metro. It has previously expressed its dissatisfaction through protest marches in various townships in the metro, including violent action that left four people dead in Tembisa in August.
This after Tembisa residents took to the streets over escalating electricity costs.
Phalatse wins court challenge
Dr Phalatse says the High Court ruling ordering her reinstatement as the executive mayor of Johannesburg is a victory for the rule of law.
Phalatse says the judgment should serve as a warning to all politicians.
She says, “This judgment should act as a warning to politicians across the country who do anything and even undermine the law to grab power for the sake of accessing resources instead of doing the work of delivering quality services to residents. During this time, we will also be reviewing all decisions that were made by the illegal ANC executive especially those that sought to facilitate corrupt acts in the city.”
In the video below, Dr Phalatse expresses relief as High Court reinstates her as Joburg mayor:
-Addtional reporting by Tshepo Phagane
