Labour federation Cosatu has called for a “capable mayor” to be appointed in SA’s richest and biggest metro of Johannesburg, 12 days into Al Jama-ah councillor Kabelo Gwamanda’s role as the city’s first resident.
In a statement on Wednesday, Cosatu Gauteng chair Amos Monyela and provincial secretary Louisa Modikwe expressed concern over the metro’s leadership instability, saying: “Since September last year, the council has been a political battlefield where the interests of parties have succeeded the interests of the residents."
They took issue with the metro having been “tussled and used as a cheap weapon leading to the constant reinstatement of mayoral candidates who hold the position only to be removed less than a quarter down the line”.
The Gauteng metros of Joburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane have been governed by coalitions — which political pundits argue are more about positions than service delivery — since the 2021 municipal elections did not produce a clear winner.
Ructions in the Joburg council started on September 1 with the removal through a no-confidence vote of DA councillor Vasco da Gama as council speaker. He was replaced by lone COPE councillor Colleen Makhubele.
On September 30, DA councillor Mpho Phalatse was removed as executive mayor through a no-confidence vote and replaced by ANC caucus leader Dada Morero. However, Phalatse successfully challenged her removal in court on October 25, which declared Morero’s election unlawful, invalid and set it aside.
In January, however, Phalatse was again successfully voted out through a motion of no confidence and replaced by Al Jama-ah councillor Thapelo Amad, who resigned on April 24, a day before he was due to face a no-confidence motion in council.
Amad was replaced by his fellow counterpart, Gwamanda on May 5. Gwamanda is facing allegations of scamming people into investing in an illegal investment/funeral scheme and his qualifications have also come under scrutiny.
ActionSA Gauteng chair and caucus leader Funzi Ngobeni said Gwamanda was nowhere to be found since the allegations against him surfaced: “The result of this is Joburg being rendered leaderless once again. The ANC and EFF have a lot to account for in terms of the rising costs of their deal in Gauteng, which continues to see mayors being forced onto Joburg residents that not only lack a discernible constituency or vision, but also face serious allegations of fraud.”
Ngobeni said the last thing Joburg needed was a mayor who is “alleged to be willing to defraud its residents while his strings are being pulled by the ANC and EFF”.
“ActionSA has begun conversations with our former coalition partners with a view to determine a way forward to protect Joburg residents from any further abuse at the hands of the ANC and EFF.”
In their statement, Monyela and Modikwe said political squabbles in the Joburg council chamber had allowed “instability, which could destabilise governance and leadership in the city”.
“The residents of Johannesburg and the citizens of the country at large cannot afford this stagnation in the executive leadership of the municipality. The members of the council urgently need to put aside their power-induced behavior and redirect their energy to serving the residents of Johannesburg,” Cosatu said.
“Time is being wasted when it should be invested in economic development, the alleviation of poverty, and the creation of jobs. The spiraling events that residents have become accustomed to are jeopardizing the city’s reputation of being the economic powerhouse of SA generating 17% of the country’s GDP, mostly through the manufacturing, retail, and service industry sectors.”
“Cosatu calls on the council and management of the City of Joburg to be rejuvenated in their duty to serve. A capable mayor should also be appointed as a matter of urgency with a collective vision of advancing the city.”
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