ADM municipal manager pushed aside after hight court ruling
District municipality’s CFO to act in under siege Mnyimba’s position
In less than 48 hours after the high court in East London declared Amathole district municipal manager Thandekile Mnyimba’s five-year employment contract invalid, the municipality was quick to replace their under-fire administration boss.
On Thursday, municipal spokesperson Nonceba Madikizela-vuso confirmed that, in the wake of the court order, Mnyimba had vacated his office, at least until his legal woes had been discussed by council.
Madikizela-vuso revealed that mayor Nceba Ndikinda had since appointed the district’s CFO Lucky Mosala, to act in Mnyimba’s office as of Thursday.
“ADM confirms receipt of the signed court order setting aside the appointment of the municipal manager.
“In line with the court order, ADM executive mayor councillor Nceba Ndikinda, has appointed CFO Lucky Moatlhodi Mosala as acting municipal manager, until such time that council sits and deliberates on the court order,” she said.
However, a number of councillors who spoke to the Dispatch, said Ndikinda had no right to appoint an acting person as that is only done by council.
Mnyimba, who was first appointed by the Amathole council in 2017, was given another five-year contract last month.
This after the defiant ADM council approved his reappointment, amid an outcry from hundreds of ADM employees, the provincial ANC, and even Cogta MEC Xolile Nqatha.
After the ADM council endorsed Mnyimba’s reappointment on May 16, a group of 131 employees put their hopes in the court, while hundreds of their colleagues embarked on a go-slow protest, demanding that his reappointment be reversed.
On Tuesday, high court judge Belinda Hartle declared the council’s resolution to hire the under-fire municipal manager invalid.
In her draft order on Tuesday, Hartle said any contract of employment concluded between the first respondent, ADM, and Mnyimba, pursuant to the decision of council on May 16, “is hereby declared invalid and set aside ” .
Mnyimba, his employer ADM, mayor Nceba Ndikinda, ADM council and Nqatha, who were all cited as respondents in the court application which was not opposed, were also ordered to pay the costs.
In their court papers, the employees charged that Mnyimba’s reappointment was done while the incumbent “lacked both general and minimum competency levels necessary for his reappointment”.
Nqatha had also alleged that Mnyimba’s matric qualifications were questionable and could not be independently verified, allegations the municipality has since rubbished.
The district was meant to hold a special council meeting on Thursday, but this was shelved at the eleventh hour, with councillors sent text message on Wednesday night informing them of the cancellation.
Madikizela-vuso on Thursday could not give reasons why the planned council meeting had been shelved, but confirmed that it would be reconvened soon.
It will discuss, among other items, the court order declaring Mnyimba’s employment contract as invalid and the council decision to rehire him being set aside.
In recent weeks, the undersiege Mnyimba experienced a number of legal woes, with the DA in the province opening a criminal case against him at the Mount Road police station in Gqeberha, accusing him of “making fraudulent representations regarding his senior qualifications”.
Last week, the labour court based in Gqeberha sentenced him to three months’ imprisonment after he was found guilty of contempt of court.
This emanated from the failure to comply with a November 2020 court order relating to unpaid employee benefits.
The sanction by labour court judge Zolashe Lallie, came as a result of Mnyimba’s failure to reinstate car and travel allowance benefits to 13 ADM employees who had taken him to court in November 2020, and who won an order forcing the municipality to reinstate the withdrawn benefits.
The sentence was, however, wholly suspended for 12 months, on condition that Mnyimba and ADM comply with an earlier court order and pay the benefits within 30 days.
At the time, Madikizela-vuso said the municipality would appeal the decision.
Attempts to get comment from Mosala on Thursday were unsuccessful.