ANC councillors in some Eastern Cape municipalities find themselves stuck between a political rock and a hard place as they try and play their oversight role without earning the wrath of party leaders.
The auditor-general, Terence Nombembe, charged this week that ANC councillors in at least 11 Eastern Cape municipalities were meddling in administration processes instead of playing their oversight role.
In 10 cases the ANC’s political infighting had a direct bearing on poor audit outcomes, he said.
Now the Daily Dispatch can show that in many cases councillors turned a blind eye when Calata House, the party’s provincial head office, intervened to influence appointments.
In most cases these related to senior management appointments across the affected municipalities.
The Daily Dispatch has seen several letters in which ANC provincial secretary Oscar Mabuyane overrides or confirms appointments that should be the business of council processes.
The party set a precedent last month by suspending for three years 16 ‘defiant’ ANC members deployed to Mbhashe council.
The councillors had voted without the blessing of party leaders to remove Mbhashe mayor Nonceba Mfecane.
Councillors who declined to be identified said the ANC leadership was undermining municipal processes, but Mabuyane yesterday denied that he had interfered inappropriately.
He said he had intervened to protect the integrity of appointment processes.
“If there is any wrongdoing, even if it is committed by the interviewing panel, we intervene.
“We have proof that these interviewing panels can be manipulated very easily to advance a particular group .
“If they want you appointed to a position, whether you qualify or not, they have a way of appointing you. The ANC can’t allow a situation in which councillors abuse the authority of their offices. We liaise with chief whips in ANC-led councils; that’s an ANC process,” said Mabuyane.
A senior ANC councillor, whose name is known to the Dispatch but is afraid of being charged, said: “Tell me what the council is expected to do if, when it plays its oversight role by scrutinising the work of the interviewing panel and required documents for all applications, everything else is overruled by a letter from Calata House.”
The letters with Mabuyane’s signature include:
l An instruction to the OR Tambo regional secretary to endorse the appointment of the third best candidate on the list for Mhlontlo local municipality’s local economic development director position. In the motivation letter for the appointment of Zwelixolile Zipete, council chief Xolile Nkompela wrote: “The presentation was done on the basis that the recommendation of comrade Z Ziphethe is the only member of the ANC from the applicants interviewed”;
l An instruction to Amahlathi council to restart the recruitment process for two directors: “We would like to advise the municipality to restart the recruitment process – this must be done immediately as the people who will fill these vacancies must assume their responsibilities by May 1 2013.”
l A letter to the interim regional secretary of Amathole to inform the region that the ANC’s provincial deployment committee endorsed the region’s recommendation that King Socikwa be appointed Amahlathi’s municipal manager; and
l He endorsed the appointment of Siphiwo Caga as Nxuba municipal manager and Unathi Malinzi as Ngqushwa municipal manager.
Another councillor said: “Now the AG blames councillors while we are forced to choose between sticking to our legislative role or defying party orders.”
But Mabuyane disputed these claims, describing the eight sources from across six Eastern Cape municipalities as “mischievous”.
“They are distorting what normally happens in terms of ANC processes. Calata does not interfere with anyone’s oversight role.
“We do things using proper structures which have the responsibility to look after such matters, including matters of deployment.
“You will find that in many cases people just dispense patronage. They go and sit in on interviewing panels and recommend people who do not even meet the minimum requirements .
“The deployment committee is meant to look into such inconsistencies.
“It also checks whether people qualify so that we comply with legislation,” said Mabuyane.
Asked about specific cases, he defended Nkompela in the Mhlontlo case, saying Ziphethe was the best qualified candidate, and that he had already been acting in that position.
“We never had a report that he did not perform well during his term as acting head. It was a political purge because some councillors simply did not like him. Those are the unnecessary divisions. People use the public service as a political football. We want to ensure that people stick to legislative requirements, and do what is right.
“There are areas where we will put our foot down because we can’t give you a go-ahead to do as you please simply because you are mayor or a chief whip .
“People undermine the fundamental principles of how to run municipalities. And many of those are people who simply dispense patronage and expect that their friends should be hired for these positions.” —
ANC oversight row
The auditor-general, Terence Nombembe, charged this week that ANC councillors in at least 11 Eastern Cape municipalities were meddling in administration processes instead of playing their oversight role.
In 10 cases the ANC’s political infighting had a direct bearing on poor audit outcomes, he said.
Now the Daily Dispatch can show that in many cases councillors turned a blind eye when Calata House, the party’s provincial head office, intervened to influence appointments.
In most cases these related to senior management appointments across the affected municipalities.
The Daily Dispatch has seen several letters in which ANC provincial secretary Oscar Mabuyane overrides or confirms appointments that should be the business of council processes.
The party set a precedent last month by suspending for three years 16 ‘defiant’ ANC members deployed to Mbhashe council.
The councillors had voted without the blessing of party leaders to remove Mbhashe mayor Nonceba Mfecane.
Councillors who declined to be identified said the ANC leadership was undermining municipal processes, but Mabuyane yesterday denied that he had interfered inappropriately.
He said he had intervened to protect the integrity of appointment processes.
“If there is any wrongdoing, even if it is committed by the interviewing panel, we intervene.
“We have proof that these interviewing panels can be manipulated very easily to advance a particular group .
“If they want you appointed to a position, whether you qualify or not, they have a way of appointing you. The ANC can’t allow a situation in which councillors abuse the authority of their offices. We liaise with chief whips in ANC-led councils; that’s an ANC process,” said Mabuyane.
A senior ANC councillor, whose name is known to the Dispatch but is afraid of being charged, said: “Tell me what the council is expected to do if, when it plays its oversight role by scrutinising the work of the interviewing panel and required documents for all applications, everything else is overruled by a letter from Calata House.”
The letters with Mabuyane’s signature include:
l An instruction to the OR Tambo regional secretary to endorse the appointment of the third best candidate on the list for Mhlontlo local municipality’s local economic development director position. In the motivation letter for the appointment of Zwelixolile Zipete, council chief Xolile Nkompela wrote: “The presentation was done on the basis that the recommendation of comrade Z Ziphethe is the only member of the ANC from the applicants interviewed”;
l An instruction to Amahlathi council to restart the recruitment process for two directors: “We would like to advise the municipality to restart the recruitment process – this must be done immediately as the people who will fill these vacancies must assume their responsibilities by May 1 2013.”
l A letter to the interim regional secretary of Amathole to inform the region that the ANC’s provincial deployment committee endorsed the region’s recommendation that King Socikwa be appointed Amahlathi’s municipal manager; and
l He endorsed the appointment of Siphiwo Caga as Nxuba municipal manager and Unathi Malinzi as Ngqushwa municipal manager.
Another councillor said: “Now the AG blames councillors while we are forced to choose between sticking to our legislative role or defying party orders.”
But Mabuyane disputed these claims, describing the eight sources from across six Eastern Cape municipalities as “mischievous”.
“They are distorting what normally happens in terms of ANC processes. Calata does not interfere with anyone’s oversight role.
“We do things using proper structures which have the responsibility to look after such matters, including matters of deployment.
“You will find that in many cases people just dispense patronage. They go and sit in on interviewing panels and recommend people who do not even meet the minimum requirements .
“The deployment committee is meant to look into such inconsistencies.
“It also checks whether people qualify so that we comply with legislation,” said Mabuyane.
Asked about specific cases, he defended Nkompela in the Mhlontlo case, saying Ziphethe was the best qualified candidate, and that he had already been acting in that position.
“We never had a report that he did not perform well during his term as acting head. It was a political purge because some councillors simply did not like him. Those are the unnecessary divisions. People use the public service as a political football. We want to ensure that people stick to legislative requirements, and do what is right.
“There are areas where we will put our foot down because we can’t give you a go-ahead to do as you please simply because you are mayor or a chief whip .
“People undermine the fundamental principles of how to run municipalities. And many of those are people who simply dispense patronage and expect that their friends should be hired for these positions.” —
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