Some opposition parties believe having a deputy mayor in Ekurhuleni is a waste of taxpayers’ money.
ActionSA has confirmed that it is in full support of the creation of a deputy mayor position in the City of Ekurhuleni.
This comes after the ANC last week revealed that the party had submitted a motion to have a report into the creation of a deputy mayor position debated in council. However, the motion was removed without any explanation.
ActionSA chairperson Michael Beaumont told The Citizen that his party has always been in support of the creation of deputy mayor positions in Gauteng municipalities.
“ActionSA has supported the establishment of deputy mayor positions in all metros in Gauteng.
“We support this principle to deepen power-sharing arrangements in the era of coalitions. This principle extends beyond any particular coalition that may be governing now, to those that may emerge in the future,” said Beaumont.
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Will this position boost service delivery?
Beaumont believes that the creation of the deputy mayor position could stabilise coalition politics and contribute to service delivery.
“In local government, the Deputy Mayor has to be one of the MMCs, so it is not an extra position but rather an extra responsibility.
“The same people who clap for the largest cabinet in South Africa’s history under this government of national unity (GNU) really have no basis to express concern around the idea of an MMC taking on increased responsibilities in the name of stability and service delivery,” he said.
Did ActionSA back down?
Beaumont did not explain why his party had retracted the motion they had prepared on this matter.
But last week, the ANC’s regional secretary, Jongizizwe Dlabathi, accused ActionSA of being threatened by the EFF about taking positions under the current mayor of Ekurhuleni, Nkosindiphile Xhakaza.
Xhakaza had offered ActionSA’s mayoral candidate, Xolani Khumalo, a position on the mayoral committee. He had been appointed as the MMC responsible for Community Services and By-law enforcement.
But ActionSA rejected this offer.
ActionSA denied that it had rejected the position because of pressure from the EFF.
The ANC’s coalition partners in Johannesburg are also in the middle of discussions of selecting a deputy mayor after a majority of councillors recently voted for the creation of a deputy mayor position.
What’s the motive?
Political analyst Andre Duvenhage said the creation of deputy mayor positions in municipalities is more about the politicians themselves than service delivery.
“This is not about better administration and better service delivery and working towards the common good of all the citizens,” he told The Citizen.
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