Johannesburg’s acting city manager Floyd Brink and council speaker Nonceba Molwele have assured the metro’s 5-million residents that services will continue uninterrupted as the municipality comes to terms with the untimely death of mayor Jolidee Matongo.
Matongo, 46, died in a car accident on Saturday evening, hours after participating in a voter-registration drive in Soweto with President Cyril Ramaphosa ahead of local elections on November 1.
Matongo was elected unopposed on August 10, replacing Geoff Makhubo who died from Covid-19 complications on July 9.
As the people responsible for the legislature and the city administration, she and Brink are effectively in charge of the metro for the time being, Molwele told Business Day on Tuesday.
Matongo’s funeral is scheduled for Friday and his replacement would be elected “when we are ready”, Molwele said, adding there is no set time frame for the election of a new mayor.
“I would like to reassure the residents that services will continue ... as mayor Matongo would have wanted. Acting city manager [Floyd Brink] as the accounting officer and his executive team will ensure that service delivery will continue as normal,” said Molwele.
Brink, who oversees and co-ordinates the operations of Joburg’s 12 entities including City Power, Joburg Water, Pikitup and the Joburg Roads Agency, told Business Day: “In the meantime, it’s business as usual and we are focusing on service delivery ... We do have our teams in place, there won’t be any [negative impact] that will be felt by residents or communities.”
ANC greater Joburg regional spokesperson Sasabona Manganye said Matongo had been central in stabilising governance in the metro and putting the city on a financially sustainable path.
“We are forever grateful for his selfless contribution to the freedom of the people of SA and the enhancement of service delivery within the City of Johannesburg,” Manganye said.
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