‘No more remote control managers’
New appointment ‘must be on merit’
THE Msunduzi Municipality must appoint a strong individual as its municipal manager who will not bend to the “corrupt” will of the politicians.
This is the view of opposition parties in the council about the calibre of individual they want appointed.
An advert for the position was placed in newspapers this past weekend.
The advert states that the post will have a three-year, fixed-term contract, and that key performance areas would include service delivery, good governance, professionalism, ethical behaviour and integrity.
The position became vacant recently after the municipality parted ways with its former municipal manager, Sizwe Hadebe.
Hadebe had been on suspension for more than a year.
He was placed on suspension after being linked to allegations of wrongdoing, including a “jobs for pals” scandal.
He had been largely blamed by council officials and councillors alike for the decay of the municipality under his leadership.
During his tenure, senior managers in the council wrote to the then Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister, Zweli Mkhize, calling for intervention.
The municipality was placed under administration in April this year by the provincial Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Department after it was found that it was on the brink of financial collapse due to mismanagement.
Cogta appointed former eThekwini municipal manager Sbu Sithole to act as an administrator.
Opposition parties said they believed Hadebe was too beholden to the politicians who orchestrated his appointment to the council.
IFP councillor Thinasonke Ntombela said the municipality had been severely affected by some appointments that had been made in the past.
He said the party wanted a strong individual who would turn the city around.
“We would like to see someone who is not just qualified, but capable, someone like the current administrator, Sbu Sithole. Someone who is strong and will not be a ‘yes man’ to politicians.”
He said cadre deployment should not be a consideration in the appointment.
“There are strong individuals, like the former municipal manager, Mxolisi Nkosi, who were capable, people who left behind reserves amounting to a billion rand.”
African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) councillor Rienus Niemand said the municipality was a R6bn entity, and should be run as such.
“It is important to point out what we do not want.
“We do not want another political deployment who will only help politicians loot the municipality. The time has come for us to appoint people on merit,” he said.
DA caucus leader Sibongiseni Majola said an individual like Sithole would be ideal.
“We are currently in this situation because we appointed individuals who were ‘remote controlled’ by politicians to do their bidding,” he said.
Majola said the person appointed should have the capacity to drive the city towards its potential as an investment destination.
He said the city was strategically located between two big cities, Joburg and Durban, and should use this to its advantage.
“There is simply little to no construction happening. We have enough malls and we would like to see the city attracting investment that will focus on manufacturing,” he said.