Petition for the Recall of the Mayor of Matatiele Local Municipality (MLM)

To: President of South Africa, His Excellency Cyril Ramaphosa , the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Velenkosini Hlabisa and MEC Zolile Williams. 

Subject: Urgent Call for the Recall of the Mayor of Matatiele Local Municipality

Dear Sirs/madam

We, the residents of Matatiele, urgently call upon the President of South Africa, His Excellency Cyril Ramaphosa , the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Velenkosini Hlabisa and MEC Zolile Williams to take immediate action to recall the Mayor of Matatiele Local Municipality due to serious concerns about his conduct that is tantamount to his breach of office and the oath he took in serving the community of Matatiele and its stakeholders..

Background and Urgent Concerns:

1. Irregular Tender Award:

   • The Matatiele Local Municipality recently published an intention to award an irregular tender contract of R67 million to a preferred bidder despite an ongoing objection and a court interdict application for the financial year 2024-25.
   • The Matatiele Music Festival held late in 2023, an irregular tender was awareded in Nov 2023 which amounts close to R4 million.
   • This raises grave concerns about the integrity of the tender process and potential mismanagement of public funds

2. Misuse of Municipal Funds:

   • Upon resuming office in 2023, the Mayor was featured in a viral video showing him and his colleagues enjoying a luxury stay in Durban, where the municipality spent over R3.5 million for an annual strategic meeting. The Municipality has been holding its Strategic planning in KZN against the Community disapproval. This expenditure, which could have been utilized more effectively within Matatiele, highlights the mismanagement of public resources.

3. Threats and Intimidation:

   • On July 23, 2024, a group of armed men associated with the security company linked to the R67 million tender entered the municipality’s finance department and proceeded to the Mayor’s office. This incident raises concerns about intimidation and security threats connected to the Mayor’s actions.

4. Financial Mismanagement:

   • The tender awarded to Ubilo Security in 2021 for R42 million has now inexplicably risen to R67 million. This increase exemplifies the municipality’s failure to adhere to proper expenditure management, resulting in fruitless and wasteful expenditure

5. Service Delivery Failures:

   • The municipality has experienced numerous service delivery issues, including lack of provision of clean drinkable water to communities, inadequate repairs and maintenance of public facilities, high unemployment rates, poverty stricken communities, crime, inequalities, social ills and injustices, killings of women, childrend and LGBTQI community, drug abuse and deteriorating road conditions in such a way that there are places where cars have no access. These issues have severely impacted the quality of life for Matatiele residents. Which the municipality needs to address.
   • He has failed to address the issues affecting the daily lives of residents of Matatiele and continues to undermine the organisation's mandate.
   • Matatiele local Municipality mission says "Where Nature, Agriculture and Tourism are Investments of Choice"  But the mission is invisible to the residents of Matatiele. 

6. Governance and Employment Issues:

   • The appointment of the CFO Mr Matola in the 2023/24 financial year who did not meet the minimum qualifications required for the position, despite the availability of stronger candidates locally or otherwise.
   • The Infrastructure Manager’s position is being manipulated to favor the Mayor’s preferred candidate rather than the qualified acting candidate.
   • There is a concerning trend of non-residents being employed in key municipal positions, despite the availability of qualified local candidates.
   • The Mayor is alleged to be living beyond his means, with multiple properties and accusations of receiving kickbacks from tenders. There are calls for a skills audit and lifestyle audit of the Mayor to address these allegations.

Call to Action:

Given the above concerns, we urge the President, Provincial Government, National Government, and the Minister of COGTA to:

1. Recall the Mayor of Matatiele to prevent further damage to the municipality and restore public trust and the dignity of the town
2. Conduct a thorough investigation into the Mayor’s conduct, financial management, and the alleged corruption associated with his tenure. 
3. Implement stricter oversight and transparency measures within the municipality to prevent future irregularities and ensure proper service delivery.
4. Skills audit, lifestyle audit and workers verfication: In recent news ghost employees were uncoverred in the institution during his administration.

Conclusion:

The continued mismanagement and misconduct under the current leadership have severely affected Matatiele and its residents. It is imperative that decisive action is taken to address these issues and restore integrity and accountability within the municipality.

We trust that you will give this matter the urgent attention it deserves and take the necessary steps to rectify the situation for the benefit of the residents of Matatiele.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this critical matter.

Sincerely,

Matatiele Corruption Watch - Leihlo La Ntsu, the eagle eye

#MatatieleMayorMustFall #RecallMatatieleMayor

Leihlo La Ntsu Matatiele Eagle Eye    Contact the author of the petition