‘Is new mayor getting two state salaries?’
THE BATTLE for control of the Ekurhuleni Metro’s budget of about R34 billion seems far from over despite the election of former deputy minister of trade and industry Mzwandile Masina as executive mayor.
The ANC Ekurhuleni chairman beat DA rival Ghaleb Cachalia by 117 votes to 106 and was declared the metro’s first citizen by Speaker Patricia Kumalo during a council meeting in Germiston on Tuesday.
But before the 224 councillors could vote for the mayor, Cachalia asked Masina whether he had resigned from the National Assembly.
When he answered that he had resigned, Cachalia para- phrased the questions and asked if the ANC politician was currently receiving remuneration from Parliament.
ANC councillors came to Masina’s defence, to which Cachalia backed down, saying the whole process to elect the mayor would be declared null and void if it were proved that Masina had not resigned from Parliament at the time of his nomination.
Yesterday, Cachalia told The Star that they had asked DA MPs in the National Assembly to “contact the relevant authorities to get clarity on whether Masina has resigned”.
“If so, when, and whether at the time of his election as mayor he was still receiving remuneration from the National Assembly or not.
“Those are pertinent questions, and the answers will determine what course of action to follow,” he said.
Cachalia said that if answers to the questions rendered Masina “in a position of compromise”, the DA would act accordingly.
“We will review our action and decide what best course of action to take. We are not ruling out anything. We will reflect on the appropriate action when we have all the facts at hand,” added Cachalia.
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University political analyst Dr Joleen Steyn-Kotze said a public servant needed to vacate their MP seat in order to serve in a local council. It could be seen as “questionable” for a public servant to draw two salaries from the state.