EFF accuses councillor of jobs for sex

Furious ANC ward rep calls for names

DRAMA ensued at a Buffalo City Metro council meeting recently after an Economic Freedom Fighters councillor accused an ANC ward councillor of nepotism and being involved in sex-for-jobs.

EFF councillor Phindiwe Kaba caused a stir when she tabled a matter alleging Ward 25 councillor Crosby Kolela was employing his family and girlfriends.

Kaba requested the council to intervene as soon as possible as Kolela was allegedly employing his friends and family “and the people that bow down to him”.

Kaba alleged that a sewerage upgrading project meant to redress unemployment in Ward 25 was used to benefit a select few.

“He bullies the project managers, there are SMSes to prove that. When the community called him for a meeting he misled the community and South African Local Government Association [Salga] deployee Mr Madyibi and said it’s the EFF that wants to disrupt and cause chaos in Ward 25,” Kaba said.

“Recently the project wanted 30 people that were supposed to be taken fairly in Ward 25, he and his ward committee Mr Mooi decided to employ their girlfriends and the community was not informed of how the employment went,” she claimed.

While council speaker Alfred Mtsi said the motion had been noted for consideration in the next council meeting, Kolela demanded in council that the names of “my girlfriends, family and friends” must be included in the motion. However, Kaba was quick to say Kolela would have time in the next council meeting to discuss whatever he wanted to raise.

Deputy mayor Zoliswa Matana also said the matter should be discussed in the next council meeting.

“I would like to request the office of the speaker to follow and investigate those allegations so that in our next meeting there is a clear proof in terms of the allegations,” Matana said.

Among other allegations in the Kolela motion was that Ward 25’s housing allocation process was not fair as people from outside the ward were given houses.

An angry Kolela said he was neither refuting nor accepting the allegations.

“I’m saying any process that is going to be taking place must consider the following; this council must be provided with names of my girlfriends and above all there is a man who is married and being accused of having girlfriends, giving girlfriends jobs . . . the marriage of this man is put in danger because of false allegations. I will say when you investigate, you should consider those things,” he said.

BCM mayor Xola Pakati said Kolela was out of order in the manner in which he was dealing with the allegations.

“I would appeal that this be subjected to due process by the office of the speaker,” Pakati said.

Matana said the report should come back to council as a confidential item later this month, but Kolela said the issue was already out in the public domain.

“You won’t reduce it and say it must be presented in a pink paper [confidential]. I want it in black and white, on white paper.” — mamelag@