Drama over eThekwini exco list

Incoming mayor of eThekwini Zandile Gumede was left red-faced by the provincial leadership’s rejection of some nominations.

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Durban - Discontent is brewing in ANC eThekwini ranks over the allocation of lucrative executive committee posts.

Incoming mayor Zandile Gumede and her lieutenants - who elevated her to be the region’s chairwoman and were vying for seats in the 12-person exco - were left red-faced by the provincial leadership’s rejection of some of their nominations.

The Mercury has learnt from party insiders that in a surprise development, veteran councillor Fawzia Peer is poised to be the municipality’s new deputy mayor, replacing Nomvuzo Shabalala.

Former ethics committee chairman Lekgoa Mapena takes over from Logie Naidoo as council Speaker. With ANC chief whip Stanley Xulu vacating that seat, Neli Nyanisa takes over the role.

The Mercury has seen the list, which was decided by the party’s provincial deployment committee.

Sources said the committee disapproved of some of the initial selections, citing a lack of experience and continuity, and amendments were made.

Zama Sokhabase and Mondli Mthembu, regional women’s league secretary and regional deputy secretary respectively, will also serve in exco. The two are second and fifth respectively on the party proportional representation list.

Municipal public accounts committee chairman and senior councillor Sipho Kaunda has also been promoted, sources say, while the name of one other ANC member to serve on exco has not been confirmed.

It appears that Barbara Fortien (regional treasurer, 3), Mxolisi Mdzibomvu (6), Dennis Shozi (7) and Ntombizodwa Mnguni (8) will all miss out on exco posts.

The eight portfolios come with impressive salary packages. Gumede is expected to take home a cool R1.2 million a year. Peer and Mapena, if elected, will each earn R1 million.

Nyisana and the rest of the exco members, including those from opposition parties, will earn R940 680 annually. These packages all exclude benefits such as cellphone, car allowance and pension.

An ordinary metro councillor currently earns about R35 000 a month.

Nxumalo, Shabalala and fellow outgoing exco members Nigel Gumede, Naidoo and Xulu are not returning to the eThekwini council. Nondumiso Cele will be a councillor but will not serve in exco. The others were ranked low in the list of 76 PR nominees, of whom only 52 nominees made the cut.

Regional secretary Bheki Ntuli confirmed that the eThekwini ANC had met the deployment committee, but ‘nothing has been confirmed in terms of deployment”.

“I can’t confirm or deny something that can change tomorrow,” he said.

ANC provincial spokesman Mdumiseni Ntuli said: “That work (exco members) is ongoing and should be concluded by the end of tomorrow (on Tuesday).”

The Mercury has it on good authority that at a meeting last week the deployment committee raised concern over the lack of depth in the list submitted by the region.

The committee consists of provincial ANC leaders and representatives of coalition partners the SACP, Cosatu and Sanco.

The regional leadership, after the committee’s findings, returned this week with an altered list, which was accepted. One insider said the initial list was dominated by Gumede’s loyalists who were “novices”. The source said the provincial leadership had “forced Gumede”s hand”.

“The province expressed concern over the proposed candidates lacking experience and qualifications,” he said. “One of the things they were concerned about was continuity and experience in exco. The provincial leadership then demanded that the region consider a mix.”

A second source said eThekwini had to appoint the “best people for the job” as “all eyes will be on eThekwini” to perform in local government after the ANC lost its grip of most major metros.

“Durban is going to have to prove that the ANC can produce. This will be a campaign to save the ANC. So you can’t have young, inexperienced people.

“You have a bunch of new councillors, all the senior ones have been removed - apart from Zandile, no one else has experience,” he said.

Peer and Kaunda, understood to have been ardent supporters of outgoing mayor James Nxumalo in his failed bid to become the party’s regional chairman, were being co-opted for “experience and qualification”.

Of Peer, the source said: “She was in James’s camp but somersaulted” soon after the regional election.”

sihle.manda@inl.co.za

The Mercury