ANC faction accused of turning Thabazimbi council into a battlefield
· Citizen
The controversy surrounding the Thabazimbi Local Municipality in Limpopo is unlikely to disappear as political power struggles continue to trouble the council.
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So serious are tensions at the municipality that DA MP Desiree van der Walt has vowed to approach the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) for urgent intervention.
Thabazimbi mayor and speaker removed
This week, a special council sitting at the municipality removed Jacob Pilane as mayor following allegations of inefficiency and incompetence. This follows a contentious council meeting where Pilane was accused of failing to dismiss the municipal manager, Gopolang Clement Letsoalo.
At the time, the DA on the council deemed the attempt to dismiss the municipal manager unlawful and procedurally improper. It described the failed attempt as a desperate “kangaroo council meeting”, led by an ANC faction.
“The law is clear. The Municipal Structures Act, read together with the Municipal Systems Act and the regulations governing municipal managers, establishes strict procedural safeguards to prevent exactly this kind of political interference.
“A mayor cannot simply decide to fire a municipal manager. Only the municipal council has the authority to appoint or dismiss a municipal manager, and any removal must follow a clearly prescribed disciplinary process,” said the DA in a statement.
On Tuesday, the municipality allegedly held yet another special council meeting where a motion of no confidence in the mayor and the speaker was passed. ANC councillors Andries Tshukudu and Daniel Mampeule were elected as the Thabazimbi mayor and speaker, respectively.
ANC accused of putting power struggles before service delivery
But the DA is still not happy.
“We condemn the ongoing ANC-driven collapse of lawful governance, where council processes are being hijacked for ANC factional power struggles while service delivery continues to deteriorate,” said Van der Walt on Thursday.
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She said that what the residents of Thabazimbi are witnessing is not governance but a full-blown political brawl, with the ANC turning the municipal council into a battlefield to fight for power.
Van der Walt said a council meeting on 28 February attempted to unlawfully dismiss the municipal manager without following proper procedure. She said the meeting was convened without an agenda and accused the ANC of attempting to manipulate council processes to remove the municipal manager.
“Let us be clear, these actions are unlawful, invalid and an abuse of municipal power. We, as the DA, refuse to participate in this lawlessness. We will not legitimise kangaroo council meetings or decisions taken in violation of the law, regardless of who is involved.
She added: “This is not about governance but about one ANC faction trying to remove another. While the ANC fiddles, the town burns. Residents and businesses have been reduced to spectators in an ANC civil war,” she said.
Van der Walt added that the chaos in Thabazimbi is not without consequences.
“It directly undermines service delivery, investment and public trust. Even more alarming was the deployment of armed private security at the council meeting on 17 March this week, which effectively turned a democratic institution into a militarised zone.
“At this meeting, the mayor and speaker were removed and replaced. This is an ANC factional battle disguised as council business and or political horse-trading for positions.
“We are not interested in positions in a collapsing council — we are interested in restoring governance and delivering services to residents,” she said.
“The reality is simple: the municipality is being run into the ground by ANC infighting, incompetence, and disregard for the law.”
Thabazimbi leaders summoned by ANC in Limpopo
On Wednesday, the ANC Limpopo leadership, under the stewardship of the provincial secretary, Vhamusanda Reuben Madadzhe, summoned the regional structure of the ANC in the Waterberg region to discuss the turmoil in Thabazimbi.
“We are aware of the serious nature of the issues affecting Thabazimbi, and we want to see all the problems resolved. But we may not delve into the matters now with the media until we get a briefing from the relevant leadership in that region,” said Madadzhe on Wednesday.
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