Bobani announces his Mayoral Committee while DA prepares legal challenge

While it is yet to be seen how the Democratic Alliance (DA) exactly plans to respond to its ouster on Monday, new Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Executive Mayor, Mongameli Bobani, moved swiftly to announce his Mayoral Committee members.

Speaking just after his election on Monday night, Bobani, who is also the Regional Chairperson of the United Democratic Movement (UDM) said that he wanted everyone to start working immediately.

The new mayoral committee members are as follows:

1. Cllr Rosie Frolick - from the African National Congress (ANC), replaces Cllr Marlon Daniels (Patriotic Alliance) as MMC for Roads & Transport. Daniels got the post after helping to defend Trollip from a motion of no confidence brought against him by the EFF early this yerar;

2. Cllr Makhi Feni (ANC) takes over Corporate Services & Administration  from the DA's Cllr Annette Lovemore;

3. Cllr Lehlonono Mafana (ANC) replaces Cllr Siyasanga Sijadu (from the Congress of the People) as MMC of Sport, Arts and Culture;

4. Cllr Litho Suka(ANC) replaces the DA's Cllr John Best as head of Safety & Security;

5. Cllr Andile Lungisa (ANC) replaces the DA's Cllr Masixole Zinto at Infrastructure, Engineering, Electricity & Energy. Lungisa is currently out on bail after he was convicted and jailed for assaulting DA Cllr Rano Kayser during a brawl that broke out a Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality council meeting in October 2016.;

5. Cllr Andile Mfunda (ANC) replaces the DA's Cllr Nqaba Bhanga as the new head of Human Settelments;

6. Cllr Queenie Pink (ANC) replaces the DA's Cllr Andrew Whitfield at Economic Development;

7. Cllr Mkuseli Mtsila (from the United Front) replaces the DA's Ratief Odendaal as the new head of Budget & Treasury;

7. Cllr Ithumeleng Ranyele (ANC) takes over from the DA's Cllr Shirley Sauls as head of Constituency Services;

8. Cllr Yolisa Pali (ANC) replaces the African Christian Democratic Party's (ACDP) Cllr Lance Grootboom at Public Health; and

9. Cllr Yoliswa Yako - from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) remains the head of the Metro's Municipal Public Accounts Committee. Ironically, the EFF got the position after saving Trollip from a motion of no confidence brought against him by the UDM and the PA in November last year.

Bobani moved to assure local residents that the new Mayoral Committee will work to ensure that services are brought to the people.

"Citizen of this metro don't worry, we are here to bring stability in this Metro, our people out there are hungry, poor there have been no services that have been going to our people.

"Our Townships and Northern areas are very dirty, I want to assure residents of this municipality that the time has come now for this municipality to bring basic services to them," Bobani said.

"This is a collective governance and the mayor is going to consult the stakeholders because the residents of this metro didn't want one party to have majoriy of votes and I respect that, while others think that the fighting is going to start I want to assure them that no the honey moon starts now."

However, the DA Eastern Cape leader, Bhanga, says Trollip is still legally the Mayor of Nelson Mandela Bay. He said that the ANC, the UDM and the EFF had banded together in an unholy alliance to plunder Nelson Mandela Bay through an illegal Council seating that was engineered by Eastern Cape MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CogTA), Fikile Xasa.

Still, a political analyst, Ongama Mtimka said that what happened on Monday at the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality council is in the Municpal Structures Act.

The Municipal Manager, Johann Mettler, had dissolved the Council meeting for seven days saying that there was no quorum because the DA's Cllr Victor Manyathi was not recognized as a councilor after he was suspended from the party.

"What the MMC did is legal because when the Speaker of the Council's seat is no longer occupied, then the MM may occupy that seat until a new Speaker is identified.

"Also the MEC [for CoGTA] is in his full right to do the duty of the MM when the MM is not available," Mtimka described.

He added that in order for the DA to challenge the procedures taken in the council on Monday, they must prove that the MM was available and Xasa overstepped.

The ANC's Cllr Tshonono Buyeye is the new Deputy Executive Mayor of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. The position was previously occupied by Bobani before he had a fall out with Trollip over alleged corruption - the position was subsequesntly abolished in November last year.

The ANC's Bicks Ndoni was announced as the new Council Chief Whip - replacing the DA's Werner Senekal.

The ANC's Cllr Buyelwa Mafaya is the new Council Speaker after replacing the DA's Jonathan Lawack.

What happened at Council is actually the results of the actions of a DA Councillor, Victor Mxolisi Manyathi, who after his membership was terminated insisted that he is still a DA Cllr until he tenders in his resignation.