The ANC caucus in Tshwane has gone to the public protector over what it says were irregular appointments made by mayor Solly Msimanga.
|||Pretoria - The ANC caucus in Tshwane has eventually lodged a complaint with the public protector against what it says were irregular appointments made by mayor Solly Msimanga.
ANC leader in council Mapiti Matsena and councillor Aaron Maluleka, who lodged the complaint on Thursday, accused Msimanga of disregarding municipal legal processes before making the appointments.
The appointments in question included the chief of staff post, which Matsena claimed was irregular. “Marietha Aucamp was sworn in as a councillor and subsequently appointed as a designated leader of executive business,” the ANC said.
It claimed the appointment did not follow any recruitment process, which rendered it unlawful, and consequently any remuneration received by Aucamp was fraudulent and amounted to corruption.
The post of the strategic executive head in the speaker’s office was done irregularly, according to the ANC.
“The appointment was done unlawfully and that consequently any remuneration received by the incumbent was an act of fraud and corruption.”
A complaint was also laid against the appointment of Sam Ngobozi to the mayoral public affairs portfolio despite there being an incumbent in the position.
According to the ANC, this implied that the incumbent had been effectively constructively dismissed, exposing the council to unfair labour practice litigation.
The party also laid a complaint about the “apparent appointment” of Matthew Gerstner as acting mayoral spokesman. It said there was no clarity on whether Gerstner was an employee of the city or not.
“If Mr Gerstner is not employed in the city, he is purporting to be the acting mayoral spokesman which is a lie. His conduct therefore is tantamount to fraudulent misrepresentation,” according to the ANC.
The party also questioned the appointment of Stefan de Villiers as the executive head in the office of the mayor.
Msimanga said the ANC had created a diversionary tactic intending to distract the DA from its mandate. “We regard the complaint as an abuse of office of the public protector,” he said.
The mayor said he inherited the mayoral office with political gaps which had to be filled with contractual employees while the recruitment for full-time workers was taking place.
Gerstner said he had volunteered to assist the mayor in his office at no fee because he had no spokesman.
“It would be difficult for the mayor to catch up with all the media work without the spokesman,” he said.
Lesedi Sekele, an official of the public protector's office, said the complaint would be recorded and a reference number issued to the complainants. “The protector will assess whether the matter fell within the competency of the office or not,” she added.
Pretoria News