Deputy mayor post widely seen as unnecessary

Workers and councillors have many concerns about the decision to appoint a deputy mayor in the City of Tshwane, given the state of the municipality.

Councillor of the Republican Conference of Tshwane Lex Middelberg said the appointment of the new deputy mayor was definitely a political decision.

“Never mind the election, just the urgency of it is questionable. The only reason they appointed a deputy is that it’s a condition of coalition between the parties,” he said.

“We have never needed a deputy in times when things were going well. Now that things are going badly, we don’t need the expense. They say they need a deputy to better control and supervise the mayor, for oversight reasons. It’s absolute nonsense,” he added.

Middelberg questioned if the deputy mayor had the power to call out the mayor.

“It is a created position. The budget for the mayor’s office is R90 million.

“The budget they created for the deputy is R45 million, that is a lot of money,” he said.

“If the mayor’s appointment is for better oversight purposes, then he admits that he is a person who must work under supervision,” he added.

Middelberg also questioned how the deputy mayor could be entrusted with millions after the Economic Freedom Fighters raised an inquiry into a trip to

Riyadh in South Arabia, where she allegedly received pocket money.

Political analyst Piet Croucamp said it might be a political trade because the city was managed by a coalition.

Croucamp wasn’t sure if there was usually a budget for a deputy mayor in a municipality.

“One has to ask how the budget works for the deputy mayor and I would like to see if other metros also have deputy mayors because I am unsure about this,” he said.

Head of Political Studies and International Relations at NorthWest University Dr Benjamin Rapanyane said appointing a deputy mayor was not a wise way to save the city from the problems it faced.

“The municipality should just stop cheap politicking and engage in doing the real groundwork of service delivery and not engage in publicity stunts,” he said.

A municipal worker, speaking anonymously, said Cilliers Brink was the worst mayor in the past 24 years in the city.

“In the past 24 years, every administration has had challenges and scandals, but since the Democratic Alliance came to power, it has doubled.

“Under Brink’s leadership, it’s even worse.

“If you look at strikes in 2019, it was over within a few weeks.

“Under Brink’s management, it lasted three months and service delivery is still struggling to catch up,” the worker said.

The worker said municipal workers were still waiting for wage increases.