DURBAN - COUNCILLORS in the uMngeni Local Municipality are demanding that municipal Speaker Thulani Mthalane add the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report matter on the agenda for Wednesday or they will boycott the meeting.
The uMngeni Local Municipality is an administrative area in the uMgungundlovu District near Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal. ANC councillors who asked to remain anonymous alleged that Mthalane was protecting municipal manager Thembeka Cibane who was facing suspension.
The SIU report recommended that disciplinary action be taken against Cibane. The report stated that nearly R20 million was squandered allegedly by Cibane. Councillors said they saw no reason for a council meeting that would not discuss the SIU report.
The parliamentary portfolio committee also visited the municipality on Thursday. According to councillors, the meeting, which was attended by the co-operative governance and traditional affairs parliamentary portfolio committee, agreed that the SIU report with its recommendations must be implemented urgently.
The Speaker was then asked to call a meeting to discuss the issue and make a decision.
uMngeni municipal mayor Richard Sokhela confirmed that the Speaker did not put the SIU report matter on the agenda. He did not know why Mthalane had done that.
DA caucus leader Janis Holmes said although she had not seen the agenda, if the SIU report was not part of the agenda there was no use for the meeting.
She said the matter had been with the council for two months and it was strange that the council had not dealt with it. Holmes said after seeing the agenda she would discuss with her caucus. They will demand that the item be included on the agenda before the meeting starts.
In the SIU report that the Daily News has seen, the SIU said Cibane must be held responsible for the misuse of the money. Last month she survived precautionary suspension because ANC councillors were divided. Out of 13 ANC councillors eight wanted Cibane to go but five voted against her suspension. The DA with 10 councillors abstained. Attempts to contact the Speaker on Sunday were unsuccessful but last week he told the Daily News he did not know what people were talking about because there was a meeting where the report was tabled.
Daily News