Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Babalwa Lobishe has called on speaker Eugene Johnson to convene an emergency council meeting, describing the appointment of an acting city manager as illegal.
The council appointed chief financial officer Jackson Ngcelwane to act in the position for 14 days last week.
At the meeting, deputy mayor Gary van Niekerk tabled a report by Lobishe recommending that chief operating officer Lonwabo Ngoqo’s appointment as acting city manager be extended for a further six months, from April 30 to October.
Van Niekerk was acting as mayor at the meeting.
Ngoqo has just completed his second three-month stint in the post.
However, during a debate on the issue, the ANC moved to amend the report, proposing that Ngcelwane be appointed as acting city manager as an interim measure.
In a letter to Eastern Cape co-operative governance MEC Zolile Williams on Saturday, Lobishe said a report had been submitted to the council meeting which included Williams’ approval of an extension of Ngoqo’s appointment.
“As I am fully aware that the act does not allow the council to request the MEC of Cogta to consider and approve an acting city manager for a period that exceeds three months, I wrote to your office and your office responded and agreed to the chief operating officer’s appointment as the acting city manager for three months.”
Lobishe said her recommendation had been changed during the meeting.
“The current chief financial officer has not signed the employment contract for the position of chief financial officer.
“This means that the council appointed a senior director as an acting city manager without an item in council, which leaves the institution with no acting person.
“The appointment of Ngoqo as the acting city manager would have ensured stability, and considering he is the only permanent senior manager with a legally binding signed employment contract who can act as the acting city manager, he would have facilitated the process of completing the appointment of the chief financial officer.”
Johnson responded to Lobishe on Monday.
“Based on the Municipal Systems Act and its regulations, the mayor can interact with the MEC regarding the appointment of a senior manager or acting city manager, but the statutory duty for reporting lies in reporting the decision of Council, not seeking approval beforehand or before the decision-making body, which is the council.
“It is a well-known fact that the appointment of the section 56 manager is vested selectively in the council.
“The involvement of the MEC post-decision only happens once the decision of the council on due appointment has been made.”
“In this regard, the mayor engaged in a pre-decision approach and elected to consult the MEC unofficially.
“Procedurally, there is no requirement for the MEC to approve the appointment before the council.
When contacted, Lobishe said she wrote to Johnson to request the meeting.
“I was not part of the council meeting, but it leaves a lot of legislative gaps. The item was green. I can’t divulge a lot on that.”
She said the party’s leadership would take those behind the change to task.
The council’s decision to appoint Ngcelwane in an acting capacity also prompted Van Niekerk to write to Johnson, accusing her of deliberately breaching the rules of order.
He wrote that despite his efforts as acting mayor, the speaker failed to adhere to the rules of order by not allowing him time to explain why the changes were unacceptable.
“In this regard, you will recall that when I tried to explain, many times, you told me to sit down or that it’s not relevant.”
In her response to Van Niekerk on Monday, Johnson wrote: “| would like to take this opportunity to respond to your assertions in the letter and attempt, as best as I can, to explain basic facts and matters of law to satisfy yourself that no law or rules of council were breached.
“It is a fact that the mayor did request the MEC for an extension of the three months [contract] that ended 31 December 2025, and that extension was granted by the MEC for a further three months, which was going to end by March 31.
“It is a fact that the COO acted for a further month without a council resolution and without a concurrence requested from the MEC and directed through a council resolution.
“That, on its own, is a violation of the legal framework.”
She said Lobishe wrote to the MEC requesting a six-month extension of Ngoqo’s tenure as acting city manager.
“The request by the mayor was made to the MEC without a council resolution directing the mayor to do so, as expected by law.
“It must be noted as a matter of fact that the mayor had no authority from the council to make such a request to the MEC, as required by law.
“Also, as a matter of fact, since the CFO was the only qualifying Section 56 manager, appointed by council based on his qualifications, he was the only official to be considered, and the council acted responsibly to ensure that there is no administrative vacuum in the administration for the 14 days that the MEC will be requested to consider a secondment.”
