Bobani letter trashes Trollip

25 March 2017 - 13:08 By Rochelle De Kock‚ Johnnie Isaac And Avuyile Mngxitama-Diko
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Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Athol Trollip and his deputy, Mongameli Bobani. File photo.
Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Athol Trollip and his deputy, Mongameli Bobani. File photo.
Image: EUGENE COETZEE

Feeling angry and disrespected‚ Nelson Mandela Bay deputy mayor Mongameli Bobani says mayor Athol Trollip is a stubborn‚ autocratic leader who disregards advice and is obsessed with getting his way.

In a strongly worded letter to UDM president Bantu Holomisa‚ Bobani wrote that poor communities “felt betrayed by us as the mayor is not even visible to them”.

“Instead preference is given to a certain group of people.”

The letter sent to Holomisa earlier this month is what preceded the second round of crisis talks between the two men and their political principals in Cape Town last week.

Meanwhile‚ Trollip and DA leader Mmusi Maimane were in Johannesburg on Friday to meet with EFF leader Julius Malema.

Asked if they had met to discuss forming a coalition with the EFF in Nelson Mandela Bay‚ Trollip said: “I don’t discuss internal party matters with the media and I’m not about to now.”

DA chairman of the federal council James Selfe confirmed the meeting with Malema was scheduled for Friday night.

“Yes‚ there will be a meeting but I won’t be there. It’s Mr Maimane‚ Mr Trollip and the EFF leadership.”

He later said: “It is not about [forming a] coalition as far as I know.”

Trollip also met with leaders of the EFF in Nelson Mandela Bay on Thursday. Both parties confirmed the meeting‚ but were adamant that it was to discuss service delivery-related matters.

“We discussed council and service delivery issues and agenda items‚” Trollip said‚ while EFF Bay spokesman Mgcini Tshwaku confirmed this.

“The mayor understands our position as the EFF that we are an opposition‚ not in coalition. Ours is to hold the executive accountable; we don’t take part in their squabbles in the coalition.”

Despite previous reassurance of a solid coalition government‚ Bobani’s letter to Holomisa is the most telling sign yet of an increasingly precarious relationship between the deputy mayor and Trollip‚ which insiders say looks irretrievable.

In it‚ Bobani accuses Trollip of disregarding municipal legislation and single-handedly making decisions regardless of objections raised. “The executive mayor does not follow proper communication channels when addressing issues that we differ on.”

- TMG Digital/HeraldLIVE

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