Tshwane council meeting held virtually to avoid violence

The Tshwane council meeting is taking place virtually on Tuesday after a scuffle during the previous sitting saw DA and EFF councillors hurling insults and physically assaulting each other.

Council speaker Mncedi Ndzwanana condemned the chaotic scenes involving the city's public representatives, saying the move to a hybrid meeting will enable councillors to communicate and collaborate without experiencing “violence from each other”. 

“The online meeting will enable us to proceed and will be in the best interests of residents. We are a sphere of government that is closest to the people and service delivery is currently compromised,” said the speaker, urging councillors to agree to co-operate.

The EFF rejected the move, saying connectivity issues and load-shedding prevented them from participating fully. 

Red beret council chief whip Godwin Ratikwane accused Ndzwanana of cushioning the executive from facing accountability, saying he “cowardly” called a virtual sitting due to pressure mounting from the DA-led mayoral committee.

Previously the EFF staged a protest in council while pledging solidarity with workers during the ongoing impasse between them and the municipality. This escalated into a physical rumble with the DA.

“We are totally against this approach. We disagree that meetings should be held online. People should not run away from accountability in this manner,” said Ratikwane.

EFF caucus leader Obakeng Ramabodu said Ndzwanana should not allow his hand to be forced into making decisions that will benefit the executive.

“You are not the one who confronted the mayor with protest action in the last meeting. We are the ones who did that. If there is anyone to be blamed, it is us. So them [the executive] threatening you is a problem. You are doing your work as a speaker and you are allowed to invoke rules of council. 

“It is not the first time there is an element of councillors undermining you in a council sitting. The caucus of the DA multiparty coalition can decide to walk out or not come to council and there are no consequences. But if it is done by us [the EFF] there are talks of discipline and all sorts of allegations,” said Ramabodu.

“We have it on good authority that the ActionSA caucus promised they will not be coming to council and will instead attend their party's policy conference. Is it true this further motivated you to take us to a virtual platform?”

The speaker dismissed these claims, saying he was well within his rights to make the decision he has made.

“It came to my knowledge on Monday night that ActionSA has a policy conference and they were not going to attend the council meeting. I was expecting them to be here.”

The council chief whip said the ActionSA caucus applied for a leave of absence but was denied.

Vanessa De Sousa, from the speaker's office, confirmed to TimesLIVE that the ActionSA caucus was absent from council.

Ramabodu reminded councillors that before the last meeting's adjournment, councillors were discussing the executive mayor's report on the state of affairs in Tshwane.

“I have convened the continuation of the ordinary meeting in accordance with the standing rules and guidelines of council to finalise the debate and all outstanding reports on the agenda,” said Ndzwanana.

“The council is expected to, among the listed agenda items, discuss and debate the executive's non-submission of financial statements to the auditor-general, the Bargaining Council ruling mandating the city to pay its workers increases and the reinstatement of dismissed workers after impending strike action in the capital city.

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