The DA in Tshwane has welcomed the decision of the city manager of the City of Tshwane Johann Mettler to declare a vacancy for the seat held by the newly elected mayor Dr Murunwa Makwarela.
Makwarela who descended to the mayoral office a week ago, was disqualified as a councillor following news that he was declared insolvent by a court of law in 2016.
Councillor Jacqui Uys of the DA says shortly after Makwarela’s election as the ANC-EFF candidate for the mayoral position in the city, a member of the public informed the multiparty coalition partners that Makwarela had been sequestrated by the Gauteng High Court.
“We were unable to find evidence of a rehabilitation order in the matter, and so we wrote to the city manager and the IEC to ask that Makwarela be requested to produce evidence of his rehabilitation.
“It is now clear that Mr. Makwarela cannot produce such evidence, which means he misled the public when he accepted his nomination as councilor of the City of Tshwane on 1 November 2021,” Uys said.
Makwarela was catapulted into the mayor’s position after he surprisingly broke ranks with multiparty coalition partners and sided with the ANC and EFF who backed him for the position.
The multiparty coalition partners which included COPE, DA, Action SA FF-Plus, ACDP and IFP were in agreement to elect DA MP Cilliers Brink as a mayor, but they were left amazed when Makwarela accepted the nomination.
Municipal spokesperson Selby Bokaba says the vacant position must be filled within 14 days .