Protest fans heat on Durban mayor

Durban is falling under eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede.

That's according to a group of protesters, mainly from the DA and IFP, who staged a picket on the steps of the Durban City Hall yesterday morning.

The DA has said that the municipality is gripped by a crisis, citing the loss of 17 senior managers in 11 months, the purchase of armoured vehicles to the tune of R20-million, R2.2-million spent on a cancelled social cohesion conference, R3-million on metro police dogs and R68-million overspent on the Essence Festival as examples.

The party also accused the mayor of deliberately hiding internal audit reports from the executive and full council.

DA caucus leader Zwakhele Mncwango said the party would "defeat the cancer of corruption" and the ongoing "looting of public funds" in the municipality.

Mncwango said the DA was "sick and tired" of the looting of public funds in eThekwini.

He said the city should be boosting investment and attracting investors, but claimed it was not doing that.

"We are facing an arrogant mayor. The ANC leadership is mostly arrogant. They have no respect for the public and institutions. We have audit committees who investigate these cases in the municipality and after making recommendations to this council the mayor and leadership decided to hide the reports.

"Since she took over we have not seen a single audit report. That is why the head of audit left the municipality because he is getting frustrated. Staff morale is down because theymake recommendations and nothing is done," said Mncwango.

IFP eThekwini spokesman Mdu Nkosi said matters of concern were the resignation of officials and the city's buying Casspirs in response to ongoing protests.

"We're not singing one song with the DA. They're saying the mayor must go. We can't say the mayor must go because we don't have the information that the mayor is corrupt. We have written to the public protector to call for an investigation into some of the units in the municipality so the truth can be unveiled.

"We have information officials are giving relatives tenders, fake positions have been given to relatives. If there is corruption we, as the IFP, will go deeper and investigate."

In a statement, Gumede said she had addressed a number of issues, including staff departures, procurement issues and general public safety, especially safety concerns at Umlazi's Glebelands hostel.

She denied a staff exodus in the city.

"We are shining as the city and will continue to do so," said Gumede.