Pretoria - New Joburg mayor Dada Morero has warned the DA that the ANC will file another motion of no confidence and win if the South Gauteng High Court ruled in favour of the reinstatement of Dr Mpho Phalatse.
Morero was speaking during a council meeting yesterday after being accused by several DA councillors of being in the mayoral seat illegally.
Some of the DA councillors were objecting to Morero’s remarks that his party was helping residents of the crime-ridden Eldorado Park community fight drug abuse and the escalation of gang-violence.
But DA members disagreed, prompting Morero to say his party would continue to be in power in the City of Joburg despite the pending outcome of the court case in which Phalatse is challenging her removal, in which she cited non-compliance with legal prescripts by the new speaker, Colleen Makhubele.
Morero’s comments confirmed the opposition parties’ view that the ANC was behind a meeting of the programme committee on Wednesday which apparently agreed to table another motion of no confidence against Phalatse if Judge Raylene Keightley ruled in her favour.
Makhubele was not available to confirm that the programme committee had made such a decision. She also did not reply to a request to react to the DA’s view that they had pre-emptively tabled a motion of no confidence in Phalatse in anticipation of the High Court declaring the events leading up to the September 30 motion of no confidence as being illegal, unconstitutional and invalid.
According to Phalatse, the latest move had sent shock waves across the City, especially among those who were “illegally installed into government”. “In this regard, the laws of the country and rules of council have once again been thrown one side in anticipation of what could potentially show the ANC and its allies to be dishonest and acting for self-interest in the eyes of the law,” she said.
Phalatse said the chief whip of the council, councillor Tyrell Meyers, who fell to a motion of no confidence yesterday, had written to the speaker expressing discomfort and great displeasure at the manner in which the business of council was being mismanaged under Makhubele and the disregard for court processes.
“It would appear from the last few extraordinary programming committee meetings that have been called by councillor Makhubele… that party politics have come into play in terms of the advice being given to committee members.
“This is not only a show of bad faith from the City’s legal advisers but also means that impartial advice in assisting all councillors in carrying out their duties is not being provided,” Phalatse said.
“This is unprofessional conduct in the extreme, prejudicial, and simply not acceptable.”
Pretoria News