The African National Congress (ANC) is planning on removing Dr Mpho Phalatse as the mayor of Johannesburg at the next Council sitting in September.
Following the successful vote of no confidence against the Democratic Alliance’s Vasco da Gama as Johannesburg Council speaker this week, the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC), the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the ANC, are not planning on removing Phalatse as mayor.
In a statement released on Friday evening, Phalatse’s office said these attempts came as a response to the announcement that lifestyle audits would be conducted on all councillors and senior managers.
Phalatse said money had influenced the vote. It is alleged that bribes were paid for the removal of the Joburg speaker. Councillors from three political parties went against the coalition agreement and removed Da Gama. The are Cope’s Colleen Makhubele, two of the three ACDP councillors and part of the IFP caucus. Leaders of the parties are happy with the outcome and will discipline their members in the coming days.
Meanwhile ActionSA said unlike the council speaker, it was happy with the mayor and was willing to fight to keep her in office. The party has been unhappy with Da Gama’s performance as council speaker, saying that he was ineffective in his role.
ActionSA caucus leader Funzi Ngobeni is confident that the plan to remove Phalatse will fail.
“We will engage with the motion again and see whether that motion is legal and if it is legal, it will come to council and will be ready to vote it down. We are quite happy with our mayor,” Ngobeni said.
Source: Eyewitness News, Daily Maverick, image from Twitter: The Citizen