Cogta committee calls for stability at mayor-less Tshwane council

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The Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Portfolio Committee, has called for urgent action to ensure stability in the City of Tshwane.

The utterance comes hot on the heels of the ousting of Democratic Alliance’s Cilliers Brink as Tshwane Mayor following a motion of no confidence that was brought against him on Thursday.

In a motion spearheaded by the African National Congress (ANC), citing Brink’s alleged mismanagement and failure to stabilize the municipality’s financial woes, 120 councillors voted for his removal, while 87 voted against it.

Committee chairperson, Mzi Khumalo, said as the oversight body responsible for promoting good governance, they urge the department of CoGTA to take immediate steps to ensure that the upcoming mayoral election is conducted within the 14-day legal timeframe.

This, he maintained is to ensure that all necessary measures are in place to maintain municipal operations without disruption.

“The department must play a proactive role in supporting the City’s governance structures during this period of change.

“It is critical for the department to ensure there are no delays in service delivery, to strengthen internal governance, and to maintain stability in collaboration with local leadership and stakeholders.

“The department must act swiftly to prevent any governance voids and guarantee that essential services to residents remain unaffected,” he remarked.

Khumalo stated that the portfolio committee will remain engaged with the department and other provincial bodies to ensure that the transition is seamless, and processes are handled with transparency and efficiency, ensuring that Tshwane’s residents are prioritized throughout this period.

Meanwhile, The DA revealed that it will not abandon the residents of the capital city and will field Brink to return as mayoral candidate to continue making progress in Tshwane.

Gauteng provincial leader, Solly Msimanga, highlighted that they made every attempt to persuade the national leadership of the ANC, to withdraw the motion of no confidence in Brink.

He emphasised that this would have enabled the future of the City of Tshwane to be deliberated under conditions of relative stability, while the existing mayoral committee continued to perform its work.

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“Had the ANC acceded to this request, there would have been time and opportunity to devise a settlement in the best interest of the people of Tshwane and Gauteng.

“The constant changing of mayors, without regard to certainty and consistency in policy, and enhancing the capacity of municipal administrations, is a cause of, not a cure for, deteriorating municipal governance and service delivery,” Msimanga expressed.